


Together Again

by KammieCeleek



Category: DuckTales (Cartoon 2017)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Arguing, Closure, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Exes, F/F, F/M, Fake Wedding, Found Family, Gen-Swap AU, June the Mechanic, Kidnapping, M/M, Mommy Issues, Motherhood, Old Friends, Overprotective Uncle, Panic Attacks, Pregnancy, Rescue Missions, Sharing an umbrella, Snapshots, overprotective dad, partial repost, spending the night
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-18
Updated: 2020-11-25
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:49:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 29,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27621617
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KammieCeleek/pseuds/KammieCeleek
Summary: Louie had a crush on June before she moved away from Duckburg when they were kids.  Now thanks to his niece Della they've been thrust back into each other's lives in a way that neither of them particularly mind.  He's determined to make the most of it now that his best friend is home again.  June's just happy to be part of the family.Set in an alternate take on the gen-swap AU by ducks-gen-swap on Tumblr!
Relationships: Huey Duck/Gosalyn Mallard, June Duck/Louie Duck
Comments: 18
Kudos: 22





	1. Adulting is Hard

**Author's Note:**

> The first three chapters of this story are a repost from my story 'Just A Crush', which I am putting here for those of you who prefer my gen-swap chapters so they're all in one spot and I'll keep writing them.

* * *

"You've got this, LP."

Launchpad nodded at Della, Fenton still sticking notes to the windshield. A faint humming caught the girl's attention and she turned to see B.U.D.D.Y driving up. Mark Beaks got out of the car, along with a female duck that she didn't know. The woman was glaring at Mark and based on the look on her face he'd clearly ticked her off somehow. He was nonchalant and indifferent to her anger, however, instead choosing to continue to tap at his phone. The woman pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration.

"Mark. Do _not_ do this," she admonished him. "I'm telling you, he's not ready."

"Listen, I know he's ready. Your job is to make sure the car's ready. That's why I hired you, honey."

"I have a name."

"I know. But you're sweet like honey, so I'll call you that."

The woman grit her teeth and Della silently wished she'd haul off and punch him. But professionalism won out and she tucked a loose strand of hair back into her purple baseball cap before opening the hood to double-check everything. Her purple coveralls were unzipped to the waist with the sleeves wrapped around like a belt. Clearly she was some kind of mechanic.

"Grease monkeys, am I right?" Mark chuckled quietly to Fenton. "She has no respect for sophisticated tech."

"Ma'am, are you sure you can—" Fenton started, but she glared at him.

"I've been working on this car since it was created. I know it better than you, okay?" B.U.D.D.Y looked at her and she smiled. "You just do your best. I'll be waiting here when you're done."

"I like her," Della stated bluntly.

The woman shut the hood and nodded to Mark.

"Car's in perfect shape."

"Great job, honey. I'll be sure to let Mr. McDuck know that you're my primary mechanic once this deal goes through."

The woman walked over to the side, leaning against one of the lampposts next to Della. Mark stepped into the street, ready to start the race. And it went as expected—B.U.D.D.Y won due to the fact that he wasn't able to crash. Gyro showed up and revealed the truth of why B.U.D.D.Y was so sophisticated. Everyone but Fenton and Launchpad loaded into the car.

"So, how did you circumvent the morality circuits?" Gyro asked Mark.

"What?"

"You know, stop it from turning evil?"

"I'm sorry, what?!" the mechanic snapped.

"Honey, let me handle this. I just made them look less dorky. They're just dumb robots, right?"

"B.U.D.D.Y, he didn't meant it!" The woman tried to get out of her seat but was strapped in. "Oh, no—calm him down, please!"

"You try!" Gyro insisted, trying to do the same as her. They were all trapped as the car sped around without abandon.

"Honey, what's going on?!" yelped Mark in terror. She didn't answer as she managed to get to her pocketknife. She used it to cut her seatbelts as Della honked the horn to get Launchpad's attention.

The next thing they knew, Della was leaning out the window to grab Launchpad's hand and the mechanic had her hands gripping Della's feet so she wouldn't fall. As the car hit a bump and lurched the two were launched into the air. Before they hit the ground, however, they were caught by somebody new.

"I gotcha!" announced the duck in the robot armor. He set them both into the limo as he headed after B.U.D.D.Y.

From there it was a race to get to safety, the robot armor crashing into the limo to reveal the pilot was Fenton. In the end they were saved by Launchpad crashing and the mechanic fell out of the limo as soon as it was set back down on the ground. Della helped her up, then watched as she marched up to Mark Beaks.

"Mr. Beaks."

"Yes, honey?"

"I quit. Effective immediately."

"Yeah, sure, whatever. I have bigger fish to fry than you. Feel free to call me, though!"

From there they gave the woman a ride back to Duckburg, where she hopped out of the limo upon their arrival at the Bin. Scrooge congratulated Launchpad on his driver's license and Della turned to the woman with a smile.

"Thanks for trying to save me back there."

"Hey, I'm not the type of person to let a kid fall to her death from a speeding car. That type should be shot."

"DELLA!"

Huey came running out of the elevator, Donald and Louie hot on his tail as he swept his niece up in a hug.

"Uncle Scrooge just told me what happened. Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"I'm okay, Uncle Huey."

"Glad you're fine," Louie told her with a sigh of relief. "The limo, on the other hand… I don't think we can salvage it."

"You'd be surprised," the mechanic chuckled. Huey and Louie looked up at her. "I was the mechanic in charge of B.U.D.D.Y. I just quit, so if you need someone to take a look at it I'll do it for free."

"I'm sorry, who are you?" Huey asked.

"She saved me from falling out of the car!" Della chirped.

"You mean it? You'll fix this hunk of junk for free?" Louie inquired.

"Hey, the least I can do for old friends."

Louie narrowed his eyes, then they popped open in shock.

"Holy— _June_?!"

"Nice to see you too, Lionheart." He shook his head and chuckled a little. Huey, on the other hand, lit up and swept the long-haired woman into a hug.

"I can't believe it—you're back in Duckburg!"

"For a couple years now! Put me down, please!"

He set her down and she let out a breath.

"Great googly moogly, that's a welcome."

"Uh, Uncle Huey, who's she?" Donald spoke up.

"Oh. Donald, Della, this is June Duck. She was a friend of ours when we were your age." He smiled. "You're a real mechanic now, huh?"

"She finally upgraded from skates to cars," Louie joked.

"Hey. Is that any way to treat the person who's going to fix your car? For _free_?"

"Fair enough, fair enough."

"Anyway, I'll ride with Launchpad back to my garage. I suppose this is goodbye for now. It was nice to see you both again." There was a sadness in her tone, Della noted, as if someone was missing. And she supposed someone was—Dewey. If she'd been friends with Huey and Louie then she'd had to have known her father, right?

* * *

That night, Della went to talk to Huey as he folded laundry.

"Uncle Huey, were you and Uncle Louie really close with June?"

"Louie was honestly closer to her than I was. Believe it or not, she's part of a set of triplets, too. She was the youngest, which is what they initially bonded over."

"Really?"

"Yeah. She was always fiddling with a special pair of rollerblades she'd made herself. It's not a surprise that she wound up becoming a mechanic."

"You should've seen her when she was talking to Mark Beaks. I'm surprised she didn't punch him. He kept calling her honey like she was his girlfriend or something."

"Ooh, boy. Having a crush on June doesn't usually end well."

"Did _you_ —"

"No. Louie did."

An empty can almost hit Huey in the head.

"Don't air my non-existent love-life to our niece," the triplet in green grumbled, entering the room.

"You spent a month not talking to her when you figured it out and turned the color of my hat every time she stood too close to you or had some kind of physical contact."

"Aw…" Della cooed. "She's really pretty, too."

"No. Dells, I haven't seen her in twenty years. We're both different people now."

"Boo. I was hoping to get an aunt out of this."

"Sorry, kiddo," sighed Huey.

"I guess I'll just settle for her being my aunt the way Uncle Gladstone is my uncle."

"Maybe you should ask her before you decide that."

Della nodded and ran off, Louie narrowing his eyes at Huey as she left.

"What? It's not like you and June ever went anywhere. It was your first crush, plain and simple. She'll fix the limo and then we'll probably speak to her minimally from that point onward."

* * *

Huey was wrong.

Largely thanks to Della's puppy-dog eyes and how well she'd fixed the limo, June was brought on as a mechanic to fix cars when Launchpad crashed them. It gave her plenty to do and thanks to her newfound reputation as Scrooge McDuck's mechanic she was given enough business to finally hire some hands down at her main garage. Up until that point it had been just her managing and working on all vehicles that drove through her doors. And that meant she had a lot more time to spend with the family. Della already called her Aunt June and it wasn't long before Donald followed suit.

To make it even more awkward, the kids would ask June so many questions about when their uncles were kids and she would answer them without fail. She didn't talk about Dewey at the request of Louie and Huey (though they did get a lecture from her initially about how the kids deserved to know their parents) but everything else about them as kids was fair game. To Webby and Della, she was a window into the past who hadn't been part of the fallout a decade earlier. Donald just liked having another adult around to handle his sister if she went too far.

Probably the biggest change, however, came with Louie.

He'd thought that he'd shaken his crush on her from when they were kids. He really did. But as it turned out, his childhood crush had turned into an adulthood one as they interacted more and more. It didn't help matters that she'd gone from cute girl to pretty adult, or that she'd retained her upbeat attitude unless she was dealing with Mark Beaks which he honestly didn't blame her for. He found it difficult to be civil around the Waddle CEO too. And she'd been hired by the jerk, so she had spent even more time with him.

Maybe that was why he felt protective of her. She was fully capable of taking care of herself but he wanted to make sure she was safe in any situation. Not to mention that when the family broke apart again she'd stayed by his side to make sure he was okay. After all he no longer had Huey or Beakley or the kids, and Scrooge was no help. June made sure he didn't fall apart like the old man. There was also something oddly enticing about her fighting the Gizmoduck armor with nothing but a wrench.

And now that everything was out in open he felt oddly at peace. You know, as much as he could running one of the biggest companies in the world while his family went on adventures. But even when they were out overnight he had June to keep him company and drive him to work if he was exhausted from a night of work. She was his girlfriend in everything but name and physical affection. He never mentioned it to anyone—to Scrooge, the kids, Huey, Dewey when he came back, and especially not to her because that would mean he could wreck everything in just a few words.

* * *

"You ever think about when we were kids?"

Louie looked up from his phone at June, who was driving. Rain slapped against the windows as they wove through traffic. He could see how it could make someone feel a little nostalgic.

"Yeah. A lot. Things were simpler," he sighed.

"A lot simpler. Back then I went on adventures with you guys all the time and there wasn't so much baggage. Being an adult sucks."

"Especially when you have responsibility quicker than you expected."

"Or you're left alone."

"What about your sisters?"

"Once we reached high school, April and May kinda found their own groups. Most of the people in my shop class were guys so they thought I didn't deserve to be there in the first place."

"I'm sorry—you're the girl who engineered a pair of convertible roller skates in your sneakers when you were _ten_. How do you _not_ deserve to be there?"

"Because I was a girl intruding in their special club. Shop teacher wasn't much help either."

"Hey, look at you now. You're running a successful garage and working for the richest duck in the world. If those chumps could see you now they'd be wishing they had backed you up somehow."

She laughed a little before gasping and slamming on the brakes as someone pulled out in front of her. It was someone on an odd-looking scooter—more specifically, it was Mark Beaks. His scooter was covered by a glass bubble that protected him from the rain and his eyes met June's. Without hesitation he pulled a highly illegal maneuver in order to pull up beside her.

"Hello, honey! Haven't seen you since the B.U.D.D.Y incident!"

The light was red so she couldn't move. June was gritting her teeth and Louie narrowed his eyes at the gray parrot beside them.

"Aw, I see you're working for Louie Duck now. Or are you just giving him a ride since you don't have a job?"

"Louie, let me punch him," she request in a low voice.

"Some other day. Let's just head home. The kids will be home tomorrow."

"Right."

The light turned green and she hit the gas, launching them forward and away from Mark Beaks. It didn't take long for them to reach Killmotor Hill, where she dove into the backseat to grab her umbrella. It was then she remembered she only had one.

"You take this and I'll go park the car," she told him, holding it up.

"No, I'll ride with you and we'll walk in together."

Her cheeks turned red and he was reminded of when they were kids and he reacted the same way. He could already feel his own burning despite the chill of the rain that slapped against the windows. June started the car again and brought it into the secondary garage Scrooge had built for her to work in. She and Louie walked into the house together under her umbrella and their proximity to each other made the cold feel nonexistent.

"Looks pretty bad out here," he told her. "I don't think it's supposed to let up until tomorrow morning."

"I heard something similar."

"Where do you live again?"

"It's less than half an hour away. But I don't like driving in these conditions. It's not safe with this much water on the road."

"Well, we _do_ have space in the mansion. If you need somewhere to spend the night."

"Are you hitting on me, Lionheart?"

"Maybe a little."

"Great googly moogly, thank goodness. I was hoping you were."

"You were _hoping_?"

"Yeah. I knew when we were kids that you had a crush on me."

"Okay, who told." She gave him a blank look and at the same time they said "Dewey."

"I kinda thought you were cute, too." They were walking upstairs towards one of the guest rooms. "But before I could say anything Dad moved us to New Stork City and I had to say goodbye."

"Poor timing."

"Really poor timing, yeah. And since we started talking again, I just kinda… started feeling that way again."

"Oh, so it wasn't just me."

"Nope."

"So you wanna be my girlfriend?"

"Yep."

"Cool. Well, since we're apparently alone, I can cook dinner."

"You don't have to—"

"Hey, you made lunch for us all the time when we were kids. It's my turn to pay that back."

"Okay, then. Just let me know if you need help."

* * *

The next morning, Della came through the front door with Webby and Dewey right behind her.

"I'm gonna tell Uncle Louie how much treasure we found!" she announced proudly.

She barreled her way up the stairs, only to find his room and his office unoccupied. When she did find him, she found him snuggled up with June on the couch and her eyes lit up as she began to giggle. Scrooge came up behind her and she put a finger to her lips, pointing at the couch. They'd clearly fallen asleep while watching a movie together and nobody was willing to wake them up.

"Aw," whispered Dewey. "You know, I wouldn't be mad to have June as a sister-in-law. She and Louie get on so well. They have since we were kids. Let them sleep."

June shifted slightly, her hair tickling Louie's nose. He sneezed and woke them both up, making June yelp as she fell off the couch.

"Sorry!" he gasped, reaching down to help her up. "Jeez, what time is it?"

"Almost ten o'clock," Scrooge replied with a smirk. "Pretty late for you, Louie."

The two young adults looked at their small audience and June let out a nervous chuckle.

"I'd better get going. I have interviews for a new hire… to… prep for. Bye!"

"Where you going?" Dewey laughed. "Stay for breakfast. You told me you leave interviews for the afternoon so you have plenty of time to work here."

"Dang it." Her cheeks were red with embarrassment. Louie sighed.

"Yes, June and I are together now. No, we are not answering any questions while we get used to it. Let's eat."

Della was squealing as she hugged June's leg.

"You're gonna be my aunt for real!"

"Hold on, Dells. We have a lot to sort out with this but I'm happy to be your aunt."

"Last one to the kitchen is a rotten egg!" yelled Dewey, running past her.

"HEY! NO FAIR!" June picked up speed, lifting Della onto her back.

Scrooge chuckled.

It had taken a while, but Louie and June had found each other again and found what had always been meant to be. Maybe if they hadn't been forced apart by her moving they would've been married by now with kids of their own, cousins for Donald and Della. Who really knew what the future held in store?

They'd find out together.


	2. Snapshots

_**Spending the Night** _

Louie yawned as he entered the dining room.

Mrs. Beakley had set out his typical breakfast already and he sat down as Della, Webby, and Donald ran in to join him. Dewey wasn't far behind. Huey was there, too, reading some new books on marine biology he'd gotten from his job.

"What are you kids planning today?" Louie asked.

"We're going to Funzo's!" replied Della brightly. "June's gonna drive us!"

"Speaking of June, should I set a place for her this morning?" Mrs. Beakley spoke up, crossing her arms. Louie choked on his coffee.

"W-what are you talking about? She's not here!"

And as if the universe was bound and determined to screw him over, it was at that moment June entered the dining room with messy bedhead and wearing one of his shirts with a pair of sleep pants. He counted his lucky stars on that point but Mrs. Beakley gave him a pointed look.

"Hi, June!" Della greeted her, smiling broadly. "Your hair looks crazy."

"It gets like this sometimes. It's usually a sign that I need to trim it soon."

"I didn't know June slept over last night," Webby remarked.

"Your uncle happens to have a thing for cuddling," giggled June before turning to Mrs. Beakley. "I can fix my own breakfast, Mrs. B. I've been doing it since I was a kid."

"All right, then."

June disappeared into the kitchen and Huey fixed his youngest brother with a glare.

"What?"

"I'll tell you later when the kids aren't around."

"I'm gonna go help June!" Della declared, dragging Webby and Donald with her. She'd apparently taken the hint.

"Seriously, she spent the night! We didn't do anything!" Louie's cheeks were burning bright red.

"Sure. And I'm guessing she was in one of the guest rooms." Huey's tone communicated that he definitely wasn't pleased.

"No, she was with me."

"Louie, I don't have a problem with you being in a relationship with her. My problem is the example you're setting for the kids."

"Huey…"

"Hey, leave him alone," Dewey insisted. Mrs. Beakley took the opportunity to exit the room.

"I'm just… I know we're all adults here, but I'd like our babies to stay babies a while longer. So why'd she spend the night?"

"Let's see… it's more convenient since she took over from Launchpad, I like her company, I like cuddling with her, and she's my girlfriend. Just because we share a bed doesn't mean that we're—"

Louie was cut off as the door to the kitchen fell open to reveal the kids had been listening in on the conversation. June was standing behind them holding a bowl of cereal.

"Uh… I think the kids have an eavesdropping problem," she told the guys, pointing her spoon downwards.

"We don't!" squeaked Della, glancing up. "Aunt June, I promise!"

"Sure, Dells. You go finish eating your breakfast and then we'll head down to the arcade once I shower."

Huey again crossed his arms at Louie, who threw his in the air as if to say 'what do you want from me?'

* * *

_**Nieces** _

"I can't stay for dinner. Sorry."

"Why not?" Della asked with a pout.

"A friend of mine called. She needs me to babysit her daughter."

"Why can't you babysit me and Donald and Webby instead?"

"Well… it's a complicated situation. But her daughter is actually my niece."

"Like a real niece?" Della's eyes were wide.

"Biologically, yes."

"Whoa, which of the sisters had a baby?" Dewey asked, coming into the room.

"May. Actually, her daughter's about Della and Donald's age… her name's Daisy."

Donald choked on the cup of water he was drinking.

"Daisy's your niece! That's awesome!" Della cheered. "Donald has a massive crush on her."

"Oh, well good to know."

"I don't have a crush on Daisy!" Donald insisted. "Della just keeps—"

"Donald, there's nothing wrong with having a crush."

"It's called a crush for a reason, June Bug," Dewey told her pointedly.

"Every situation is different, Dewford."

"You and Louie when we were kids."

"That was _not_ my fault."

"Why did he call you the name Uncle Louie calls you?" Della piped up.

"Because he wants to annoy me. Bug is my middle name. My mother was… the _worst_." She shuddered a little. "I could talk to Violet about bringing Daisy by if it's okay with Scrooge."

"He knows Daisy," Donald informed her. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

"It'll be you, me, and Louie with them, Webby, and Lena," Dewey warned.

"Believe me, I can handle my nieces and nephew." Della gasped happily.

"You called me your niece."

"Yes, I did. Because you are."

"When are you and Uncle Louie getting married?"

"DELLA!" Donald snapped.

"What? I want it to be official." June ruffled Della's hair but neither twin nor Dewey failed to notice the red in her cheeks.

"Don't worry about it. You're already officially my niece in my book. Just like Donald is my only nephew."

"Aw," Donald muttered.

"I'll be back soon. I promise."

* * *

_**Sleep-Deprived** _

As the moon outside continued to set, Louie focused on the paperwork in front of him.

With Bradford and the other members of the board having betrayed Scrooge and the company, it left Louie in a position where he had so much more to do. It meant he had little time for anything but work. That included eating and sleeping. He often stayed up several nights in a row now, no matter how much his family tried to convince him to get some rest. There was no time for rest, not when the family was in danger and he had to run McDuck Enterprises single-handedly. Who could he trust?

"Lionheart?"

He half-turned to see June in the doorway to his office.

"Hey, June." He went back to work. "What do you need?"

"I need you to go to sleep."

"No time. Sorry. I need to finish all this."

"No, you need sleep. It's been three days. This isn't healthy."

"Well, if I don't do it, who will? Nobody."

"Louie, please."

"Leave me alone, June." He could feel that famous McDuck anger rising and while it was strongest in Huey, it did come out of him at the worst times.

_Don't lose control!_

"I'm worried about you. Please, just go to bed. You'll feel better in the morning."

"June, I'm the only person running this company now. This needs to be done."

"You're no good to anyone like this." She put a hand on his shoulder. "We're worried about you."

"Maybe you shouldn't be. I didn't matter to this family for ten years. Nobody cared that I was put in this position before I was ready. Nobody stopped Huey from tearing this family apart. Nothing stopped Dewey from getting stuck on the moon. And nothing stopped you from leaving me behind when we were kids."

"Just because I wasn't here doesn't mean I stopped caring."

"Yeah, right." The words came out before he could stop them. "Just like your mother. She cares about you so much even though she left you behind."

As soon as the words left his mouth he saw the hurt on her face.

Iris Duck, when they were kids, had been an agent of S.H.U.S.H alongside Mrs. Beakley. It had recently surfaced that Iris was now working for F.O.W.L and June had confessed that her mother left the family behind after they moved to New Stork City. Until the revelation of the villainous organization none of the Duck sisters had seen or heard anything from their mother. Iris didn't care that her youngest daughter was connected to the McDuck family; she'd gone as far to personally fight June not long before and force her youngest daughter to cause harm to the woman who'd birthed her.

She'd cried herself to sleep in his arms that night after he'd patched her injuries.

"June—"

"No. You know what? I can't see you right now. Just… go to bed. You're not thinking straight, Llewellyn."

Oh. Oh, he'd _really_ messed up. She had not once in the twenty-plus years they'd known each other called him Llewellyn. He could hear her sniff as she headed down the hall away from his office.

He stared down at the papers. They could wait until morning. He needed some sleep and then he'd apologize to her. That had been way out of line.

She wasn't in their room. She'd apparently taken the guest room down the hall, the one furthest from him. His heart cracked a little at hearing her sob into her pillow. That's it, he was _definitely_ apologizing in the morning if his family didn't kill him first for what he'd said.

He almost couldn't fall asleep from the guilt but he managed.

When morning came and he emerged from his room, he discovered that Scrooge had gone into the office alone. Huey and Dewey had sent texts telling him they'd taken the kids out for the day. An additional text from Della just had the angry emoji and a 'YOU NEED MORE SLEEP OR YOU'RE GONNA LOSE MY COOL AUNT'. He found June in the dining room, running her fingers over a mug of hot cocoa. Her eyes were downcast, refusing to meet his.

"I want to say I'm sorry, but sorry can't make up for what I did."

Silence.

"You're the last person in the world I want to hurt. Everything that's happened over the past couple months has had me beyond stressed out. It's hard to sleep and it's easier to bury myself in my work than face it. And what happened with your mom—great googly moogly that was bad. I know it was bad. I was just so sleep deprived that I wanted to—to lash out. I knew it would hurt you to bring it up and I did it anyway."

He glared down at the carpet with angry tears in his eyes.

"June, I love you, and I'm sorry that I let myself get like that."

In his tear-filled blurry vision, he didn't notice that she'd gotten up from the table.

"I should never do that to people I care about, especially not my family. Because like it or not, you're stuck with this family now. I can't let you go again, not after—"

Her arms wrapped around him and he felt her tears soaking through his shirt.

"She told me that I was supposed to be alone," June hiccupped. "That nobody was supposed to care about me and that anyone who did was only doing it because they wanted something."

"No. Not me." He tightened his arms around her.

"I know. But you need to take care of yourself. You're no good to anyone if you drop dead from exhaustion."

"This from the workaholic mechanic." There was laughter in his voice.

"Okay, but I listen when you drag me off to bed, buster." She had a hint of laughter and the tension was gone, melted like ice in hot water. "I think you need to take a day off. Scrooge said he'd go in for the day so you can rest."

"I didn't get a lot of sleep last night, honestly. I didn't have someone hogging the blanket."

"It was too quiet in the guest room. Nobody was snoring."

He chuckled and hugged her tighter.

"I love you so much."

"I love you too."

* * *

_**Technical Difficulties** _

June narrowed her eyes at the tech Mark Beaks had brought her.

"This seems like a dangerous project," she told him. "A self-driving car with a personality… I don't think this is a good idea."

"Listen, sweetheart, I didn't hire you to do what I do. I hired you to take care of the car." He tilted his head towards the car that would be a 'Waddle-brand achievement for the ages!' "If you can't do that, I'll have to find a more qualified mechanic."

"I'm more than qualified, Mr. Beaks." She picked up her toolbox and went over to the half-finished vehicle. "I can finish the car."

"Great! Let me know when it's done so we can test it."

B.U.D.D.Y watched her with that smiley-face screen as she worked on the engine. She muttered to herself about lousy clients before reaching for a wrench, only to find that it wasn't in her toolbox. It must've fallen out. Then she felt a tap on her shoulder and there was the robot, extending its arm to give her the needed instrument.

"Wow, thanks. You're pretty smart. I find it hard to believe Mark Beaks made you."

The mechanical marvel nodded and sat by her side, learning about the car as she explained each component. Even if he was a robot, he was still someone to talk to. But she quickly learned that B.U.D.D.Y had a bit of a temper. This only solidified her thought that this had not been a creation of Mark Beaks but rather someone who actually had the intellect and the drive to create something like this.

Eventually the car was done. And after some testing Mark decided B.U.D.D.Y was ready to go on the market, despite her advising him not to do it because of the robot's temper. She had known Huey Duck as a child. She knew what a volatile rage could do (on the few occasions he'd lost his cool). But Mark Beaks was the oh-so-amazing CEO of Waddle and he knew better than some mechanic he'd hired because he thought she looked good and did good work.

_Sexist jerk._

At least she reconnected with her childhood friends because of the incident, so some good came out of it.

* * *

_**Support** _

As soon as she heard the door to the garage slam shut, she stood up.

There, standing in the doorway, was Della with tears in her eyes. Wordlessly the girl rushed towards her and buried her face in June's stomach. June gently stroked her head, kneeling down to hug her better.

"Della, what happened?"

"Uncle Scrooge lost my dad in space."

They'd finally found out the truth. Or at least part of it.

"I can't believe nobody ever told us! Did you know?"

"I knew bits and pieces but… I warned them. I told them that you deserved to know."

"I don't wanna see Uncle Scrooge anymore."

"Della—"

"I came to say goodbye. Donald and I are gonna go back to the old house with Uncle Huey."

Warning bells went off in June's head. She'd heard Louie tell her about how miserable life at the manor had been without Huey, Dewey, and the kids. And by the sounds of it, the family was starting to break apart again. If it had nearly destroyed Scrooge last time, what would it do now? Della let go of June and wiped her eyes.

"Bye, Aunt June. I'll miss you."

"Dells…"

Della ran out of the garage, the door once again slamming shut behind her.

June immediately ran out after her, finding that the car was already packed and the twins inside. Scrooge was nowhere to be seen. Mrs. Beakley had also packed her own car intending to go on a vacation. As the two vehicles peeled off (and the limo with Launchpad wasn't far behind), she went into the house. She found Louie in the bedroom that had belonged to Della and Donald, staring at a picture in his hands with a blank expression on his face.

"Lionheart?"

"Hey, June." She sat down next to him and looked at the photo.

Dewey sat between his brothers on a couch, Scrooge standing behind them. In Dewey's arms were a pair of eggs. All four sets of eyes were on the precious bundles.

"What do I do?" His voice was breaking. "I can't… not again. I can't watch this family break apart again."

"Louie, it won't."

"How do you know?"

"Because this isn't a family breaking apart. Emotions were running high and everyone needs space but you."

"Seems like it's breaking to me. This is what happened with Dewey all over again."

Her arms wrapped around him.

"But this time you have me. I might not be family but I'm someone who's not gonna leave until this is fixed. Fixing is what I do." He let out a humorless chuckle. "Hey. I will go and drag those kids back if I have to. Della will listen to me."

Louie stared down at the photo again then up at her.

"You know what it feels like, don't you?" She nodded.

"My mother left our family right after we moved. She just walked out the door for work and never came back. No note, no phone call, nothing. I found out while we were in high school that she was working for S.H.U.S.H and disappeared on a mission. Dad didn't tell us for the same reason you guys didn't tell the twins what happened to Dewey. All three of us walked out of the house because we were so angry at him for hiding the truth, but… we still came back. Because he was our family and we needed him as much as he needed us."

"I need the twins. And Huey. They're…"

"Your family." She gave him a comforting hug and he returned it. "Besides, I remember somebody telling me when we were kids that Ducks don't back down. Why do it now?"

"You're right."

"I'm always right."

"Even that time you told Dewey you could do a backflip of the half-pipe you two built in the backyard and you broke your ankle?"

"And my wrist. Don't forget my wrist."

He chuckled.

"Thanks, June. I needed that."

"I'm not going anywhere. I'll be right down the hall if you need me in one of the guest rooms… if that's okay with you."

"Oh, of course it's fine."

She smiled and disappeared out the door.

* * *

_**Old Friend** _

Dewey heard music as he headed towards the garage.

A woman was working on the limo back there, rocking out to the Powerline classic of "Stand Out" as she bent over the engine. He didn't know who she was, probably a mechanic they'd hired if that picture of Launchpad McQuack they had was any indication of the new pilot's driving abilities.

"Hey?" he called. She yelped and stumbled backwards before regaining her footing. Dusting herself off, she turned around and her eyes widened upon seeing him.

"Dewey?!"

"Uh, sorry, who are you?"

"Guess it _has_ been a while. Last time you saw me I was wearing a pair of homemade roller skates and trying to show off my skills." He blinked and his eyes lit up.

"No way—June?!"

"Yep, in the flesh!"

"You work for Uncle Scrooge now?"

"Thanks to your daughter. By the way, I think her puppy-dog eyes should count as a legal weapon. You can _not_ say no to her once those things light up."

"I haven't seen them yet, sorry."

"Trust me, you'll know when you see them. April's have nothing on hers."

She picked up the wrench she'd dropped.

"It was nice to see you again. I'd better get back to work before Launchpad takes this thing out again."

"Right. The new pilot."

"He's a sweet guy, Dewey. Give him a chance to be your friend."

"You're not—"

"No. Now go spend time with your kids."

"Can do, June Bug."

"Goodbye, Dewford. See you later!"

He chuckled and exited the garage.


	3. A Not-Wedding at Branwen Castle

"I'm sorry. You want us to _what_."

"Get married."

June and Louie both stared at Scrooge in confusion and horror.

"What do you mean, get married?" June snapped and Louie seemed taken aback by the hostility in her voice. She noticed and took a deep breath. "Louie, I love you, but I don't know if marriage is the best thing for us right now. This is still kinda new."

"You're not _actually getting married_ ," Scrooge sighed. "Look, there's a lost artifact that we've been searchin' for and it's located in a castle."

"I'm still not understanding," Louie replied.

"The owner of the castle doesn't want it open fer tourists. Instead she'll only let people in if they're having their wedding there. That's where you two come in. You'll pretend to be getting married and while we're all staying in the castle we can find the blasted thing. Then you can break off the engagement and we'll get our money back."

Both young adults stared at him for a minute, then June shook her head to snap herself back to reality.

"You want to run a scam? On that poor woman?"

"June, she owns a castle and charges ludicrous prices to rent the place out. I doubt she's poor."

"That's not the point! This is a scam!"

"Actually…" Louie mused.

"Don't tell me you're actually considering it."

"Look, we both know we're probably gonna get married one day, so this could be a practice run for our families. Besides, how else are we supposed to get in there? Break in?"

"Fair enough."

"I'm askin' you two because honestly, it's the most believable."

"He's got a point," June admitted. "I mean, Huey still goes tongue-tied around Gos at the _worst_ possible moments. Not that you _don't_ , but it's fewer and far between. And they haven't been together that long."

"There. Ya see?"

"You've already made the reservations, haven't you," Louie deadpanned.

"Yes, I have." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring that he handed over to Louie. "Pulled this out of the Bin this morning for you two to use as a temporary engagement ring. Take care of it."

"I just have one more question: do we tell our families this is fake?" June asked quietly. Scrooge sighed.

"Yer thinkin' about yer mum, aren't ya?"

"Yeah. And my dad and sisters. If they found out about this…"

"Tell 'em the necessary bits. But tell them to keep it a secret. Like it or not, F.O.W.L is also gonna be gunnin' fer the Lyre of Seasons. It has the power to control the weather, and few know it exists at all. You two figure out how to make this look good, all right?"

"Got it." Louie slipped the ring to her (it was a modest little thing that worked for her as a fake engagement ring) and she slid it on her finger as they exited Scrooge's office at the Bin.

"How long until Della notices?" June inquired half-jokingly.

"That's an oddly specific question," Louie chuckled nervously.

"She's already asked me a couple times when I'm going to officially be her aunt."

"Oh, jeez."

"Relax, Lionheart. We'll just explain it to her that this isn't a real engagement."

"Yeah, but who's gonna tell her?" The elevator arrived at the lobby level.

"I say we shove that job off on Huey and to make him feel better we let him plan this thing."

"Ah, June, I knew I loved you for a reason."

She rolled her eyes and they got out to the car. Pensively she held up her left hand. The ring glittered even in the dim light of the parking garage and she knit her eyebrows together.

"I guess I should call my dad and my sisters."

"You can do it on the drive home. I'll even talk to April."

"Louie."

"What? We all know that she's… a little bit of a diva."

"Fair enough." She shrugged and handed her phone to her boyfriend/fake fiancé. "Call April first, then."

He did, the ringing permeating throughout the car as June pulled out onto the bridge. April picked up on the fourth ring.

_"Junie! What a surprise!"_

"Hey, April. So, I have some news—"

_"Hang on. Let me put you on speaker. May and Daddy are here."_

Louie froze and sank down in his seat, hoping to disappear. Verne Duck was not the biggest fan of his youngest daughter's boyfriend, something he'd made no secret of the couple times that the two had met since they started dating.

 _"June Bug!"_ Verne greeted her warmly.

 _"Hi,"_ May added.

"Hi, Daddy. Hi, May!"

_"So, what's your news?"_

"Well…" She glanced over at Louie. "I'm here with Louie right now, and the short of it is we're getting married."

 _"OH MY GOSH!"_ screamed April, forcing Louie to scramble for the volume knob. _"MY BABY SISTER IS GETTING MARRIED!"_

"April, calm down and let me finish. It's a very complicated situation and no, Dad, I'm not pregnant."

_"Good. I'm not ready to be a grandpa again."_

_"How is it complicated?"_ May asked.

"There's a castle that has a rare artifact hidden within its walls," Louie explained. "The owner of the castle won't let people inside unless it's for weddings being held there."

_"I bet you talked her into it for a laugh."_

"DAD."

_"Sorry, June Bug."_

"Scrooge came up with the plan because someone else is going for the artifact and it'll be really bad if they get their hands on it."

 _"So it's a scam,"_ May stated.

"A little, yes. But it's for a good reason."

 _"Just tell us when to be there!"_ April squealed. _"Real wedding or not, it'll be good practice for when you get married for real! Oh, and don't forget to send me a picture of the ring, Junie. I'm sure it's got to be gorgeous!"_

"I will."

 _"Llewellyn, take care of Junie,"_ Verne warned.

"I will, sir. I care about her a lot and I won't let anything happen to her. Besides, I think she can take care of herself."

They pulled up to the gate and began the drive to the top.

_"See to it you do."_

_"We'll see you guys there!"_ May chirped.

"Love you all! Bye!"

"Bye," Louie added before hanging up. "And your dad still doesn't like me."

"Might I remind you what happened to May?"

"Ah. Right. I still wanna punch that guy. Or get Dewey to do it."

June put the car in park in its spot and they got out. She quickly took a picture of the ring to send to April before they walked up to the house. Louie slipped his hand into hers then took a deep breath.

"You ready?" Her tone was concerned but warm.

"Yeah. Time to tell the family."

They entered the house and almost immediately…

"INCOMING!"

Foam darts came flying through the air and June ducked, the projectiles suctioning to the now closed door. Della was the guilty party, grinning sheepishly from the doorway before she was tackled by Donald.

"I win!" he declared.

"Ah, but I have a partner! Get him!"

More darts came out of nowhere and hit Donald, knocking him to the floor. He let out a groan of disappointment.

"Hey, June!" Webby greeted the mechanic, lifting her night-vision goggles. "Hey, Louie!"

Della leapt up to go hug her favorite aunt. As June hugged her back, however, Della immediately felt the cool metal of something on June's left hand. She backed away, her eyes landing on the ring. Her mouth dropped open and she let out a scream that brought her father and other uncle racing into the room with Mrs. Beakley, all three looking ready to defend the family at any costs.

"Della, what's wrong?!" Huey gasped.

"UNCLE LOUIE AND AUNT JUNE ARE GETTING MARRIED!" she squealed, hopping around excitedly.

"WHAT?!" everyone yelled in complete shock.

"You're getting _married_?!" Dewey yelped.

"When did you ask her?" Huey asked.

"Is Aunt June moving in permanently?" Donald added.

"How long until the wedding?" Webby sighed dramatically.

"One at a time, please," June requested, backing away slightly. Mrs. Beakley frowned.

"This is quite sudden. You haven't been together that long."

"Well, the situation isn't… quite like that," Louie admitted. "This isn't a real engagement."

Della's face fell.

"It's not?"

"We need to get into a castle and the only legal way to do it is by having a wedding there, so Uncle Scrooge asked me and June to… pretend to be engaged."

"Aw." Della looked disappointed, so June gave her a hug.

"It's a practice run," she whispered into the little girl's ear conspiratorially. Della's face brightened again.

"So what, we're just inviting the family?" grumbled Huey.

"No, we need it to be convincing. June's sisters and dad already know and they're relatively onboard. April nearly blew out my eardrums from how loud she was on the phone."

"To make it look good," June added, standing upright, "we need someone to plan it. Huey?"

"Wait, you want _me_ to plan your sham wedding?"

"Do it!" yelled Della.

"Well, I'm not a fan of lying…"

"If we don't get to the thing, F.O.W.L will," Louie told his oldest brother. "This is to keep them from getting their hands on it."

"I guess I'll try." June's phone buzzed and she checked it.

"Oh, and April's already booked tickets for her and May to come to Duckburg to help me go wedding dress shopping." She grit her teeth. "I told her this wasn't real."

"I suppose we should all start preparing," Mrs. Beakley cut in. "Mr. McDuck will want it to happen as soon and as cheaply as possible."

* * *

Two weeks later they were in Ireland, on the road to the castle that sat on the western coast. Standing at its entrance was a dove with long silvery hair, smiling broadly as she extended her arms to welcome them.

"Hello! Welcome to Branwen Castle!" she stated as they exited the car.

"Wow…" whispered Webby, looking up at its high walls and gorgeous frame.

"My name is Rose. I presume you are the wedding party?"

"Yes, Miss Rose," Scrooge replied.

"This isn't all of your guests, correct?"

"Oh, no. Some will be arriving a little later."

"In that case, let me show you to your rooms."

They followed her inside, their luggage being brought in by mysterious footmen who'd seemingly materialized out of nowhere. She held out her arms as she opened the door.

It was everything you'd expect a well-kept castle to be—large, luxurious, and beautiful. Scrooge was reminded of Castle McDuck if he was being honest. Or perhaps McDuck Manor itself. At any rate, Rose stopped and turned to face them.

"Branwen Castle has stood here for over eight hundred years," she explained. "While it's changed hands many times over those eight centuries it fell into my family's care nearly a century ago. We've worked to maintain it and as a part of that, I chose to make it only available for visitation to those who are willing to be wed within its walls."

"According to legend," whispered Webby to Della, "Branwen was the goddess of love, beauty, spring, and inspiration. She protected married women and was even known for breaking up bad couples to give the women a fresh start."

"So romance castle."

"Yep!"

"Cool."

"Now, for your rooms…" Rose continued.

Within ten minutes, Della was jumping on the bed in her room while Webby unpacked her suitcase. Once they were unpacked they headed downstairs, where Rose showed them a small area full of toys and games for children—even video games.

As more guests arrived (April, May, Verne, Downy, Fergus, Gladstone, Fethry, Violet, Daisy, Gyro, Fenton, Manny, Launchpad, Gosalyn, and Drake), Della couldn't help but think what a shame it was for this to not be a real wedding. Louie emerged from upstairs and caught the eye of Downy immediately, who rushed to hug her grandson.

"Oh, Louie!" she crooned, squeezing him tightly. "I'm so happy for you! It's only once in a lifetime you find your person and you found her."

"If that son of ours hadn't kept ya tied up with work ya might've found her sooner," Fergus muttered.

"Maybe," Louie agreed as Downy released him.

"I'd love to meet her! Where is she?"

"Upstairs, I think. I haven't seen her since Rose shoved us off to different rooms. I'm sharing with Huey and Dewey for the first time since we were kids." He pulled out his phone and texted her. "She'll be down in a minute."

June came downstairs with Scrooge and Donald in tow. Scrooge was analyzing what he could about the castle to figure out the location of the harp but that all went out the window as soon as his parents saw him.

"Hello, Mummy, Daddy," he greeted the two.

"Scroogie! And Donald! And…" Downy's eyes went to June, who fidgeted nervously. "Who is this lass?"

"Granny, Grandpa, meet June. My fiancée," Louie stated, going to slip his hand into hers.

"Oh, isn't she just lovely?" The matriarch of the McDuck Clan grasped June's right hand between hers. "Welcome to the family, dear. I hope our Llewellyn treats you well."

"Lionheart and I are just happy you could make it, Mrs. McDuck."

"Please, call me Granny! After all, you're marrying my grandson!"

June laughed a little and Downy and Fergus disappeared down a hall as Rose came to show them where they'd be staying. Scrooge let out a breath he hadn't even known he'd been holding in.

"Good work, lass," he told June. "Keep it up."

"Your mom did most of that."

"Aye, but that's what my mum does. She knows how ta keep it upbeat. My dad, on the other hand… he's an old curmudgeon."

"Seems it runs in the family, Scroogie."

He froze and looked to see Goldie O'Gilt standing in the corner, leaning against the wall. Della gasped and she and Webby stopped playing their game to watch what was happening.

"Goldie. What are ya doin' here?"

"Relax. It's not a con, I swear. I was invited to come here."

Louie chuckled nervously, June squeezing his hand to reassure him. Goldie walked up and began looking June over. She smiled a little.

"You'll make a beautiful bride, honey. Fitting for the girl who managed to nab him."

"Thank you, Goldie," Louie sighed. "I'll be honest, I wasn't entirely sure you were going to come."

"And miss your wedding? Sharpie, why would I do that?"

He raised an eyebrow and she shrugged.

"Lovely place, though. I'm guessing there's some kind of treasure hidden here." Her eyes went to Scrooge.

"Harp of Seasons. Hoping ta get it before F.O.W.L."

"Ah, a wedding of opportunity. Well done." She clapped in approval.

"Miss O'Gilt?" Rose greeted her, walking up. "Please follow me."

"Yes, ma'am."

"I can't believe you invited Goldie," Scrooge muttered to Louie.

"First of all, Huey was in charge of the invitations. Second of all, if we hadn't, she'd have found out and come anyway."

Scrooge raised a finger to object, then shut his mouth.

"Fair enough. Keep an eye on your valuables, though."

* * *

"We made it in."

Iris set down her knapsack and cringed as Steelbeak tumbled after her, landing hard on the floor.

"Be quiet," she chided him. "We can't let that castle owner know we're here."

"Whatever. Why can't we just come in as tourists and wander away from the tour group?"

"Because the castle is only open for weddings, not tourists. Did you not pay attention to the briefing Bradford gave?"

"Uh…" She rolled her eyes and they could hear talking in the next room. Iris cracked the door open and saw none other than Louie Duck talking to his niece.

"Shoot. Scrooge's people are already here."

"What? How'd they get in if it's only open for weddings? This is dumb."

"Sh. I'm trying to listen." He crossed his arms.

"Uncle Huey said you'd be nervous about it."

"Della, of course I'm nervous. She's amazing and I'm still shocked she agreed to this. We haven't been together that long."

"But she's your soulmate!" Della's eyes were wide with excitement.

"Just enjoy yourself this week, kiddo. Let me worry about my nerves."

"If it makes you feel better, Aunt June is nervous about getting married, too."

Iris froze as Louie and his little niece walked off. She quickly closed the door and fell against it, arms splayed as her eyes were wide open with shock.

"There _is_ a wedding. The green one is getting married… to my daughter."

"No way! You have kids!"

"Three girls. If my youngest is getting married that means her father and sisters are here, too. This mission just got a lot more difficult."

"You stay here, then."

"Nope. You punch first, ask questions later. There's a lot of mystery around this castle, especially regarding intruders, and we can't risk being seen."

"Whatever. What if we pose as guests?" She blinked and snapped her fingers.

"See? This is what happens when you think. That's brilliant. I _am_ the mother of the bride, after all. You can be my plus-one."

She slipped back out the way they'd come and they went around the front, knocking on the door. A small dove opened it and blinked in surprise.

"We're here for the wedding," Iris told her.

"You are? I don't believe you're on the guest list."

"But I'm the mother of the bride. I have a right to be here." The woman narrowed her eyes, looking Iris and Steelbeak up and down.

"I'll let you in. But no shenanigans or I'll have you thrown out in an instant. I'm guessing your relationship with your daughter is less than ideal."

"Yes, unfortunately, we had a falling out." They followed the woman inside. "I just want to see my youngest married."

"Well, I'm afraid there's only one room left so you'll have to share." The woman smirked in a way that implied she knew more than she was letting on. "That won't be a problem, will it?"

"Not at all!" Steelbeak replied. "C'mon, Iris."

They headed upstairs.

* * *

Dinner had arrived, everyone seated around the massive table in the castle's dining hall. Rose's mysterious servants, none of whom ever spoke, walked around attending to the guests. Even when Della tried to talk to one of them, they said nothing and simply walked away to fill Scrooge's cup.

The door to the dining hall opened and June choked on her food when she saw who walked in. Her father leapt to his feet, eyes narrowed and blazing with fury.

"Iris…" he growled.

"Calm down, Verne," she sighed. "I'm here for Junie's wedding, same as you."

"Of course you are," Scrooge muttered sarcastically. Louie had his hand in June's, making sure she was okay as she began breathing heavily.

"I have made it clear to Ms. Duck and Mr. Steelbeak that they are to behave," Rose stated, walking into the room. "If they do not, I will have them thrown out in an instant and they will not be able to regain entry."

"I'm starving!" Steelbeak spoke up, sitting down next to Donald. The boy scooted away from him. "Hey, it's the little brawler! Excited about your uncle getting married, huh?"

"Uh… yeah…?" Donald looked uncomfortable, and the parts of those assembled who'd fought Steelbeak before were giving him looks of distrust.

Iris, on the other hand, took the only other available seat… which happened to be directly next to her ex-husband. Verne glared at her and she glared right back before grabbing what she was going to eat. June got up from the table and left without a word, Louie immediately getting up to follow her. Della attempted to do the same, but Dewey grabbed her arm and shook his head.

"Let Louie handle this," he whispered.

Outside the room, June was hyperventilating and leaning against the wall, slowly falling to a sitting position. Louie crouched beside her, holding her against him and trying to help her calm down.

"It's okay. June, breathe. Just breathe. Deep breaths." She inhaled deeply and exhaled, repeating a few times until she was back to relatively normal. "Okay. Listen. Don't let her get to you. Just focus on what we're doing here."

"Last time I saw my mother, we fought. She almost threw me off a building. How could she think showing up here was just fine for her to do?"

"She's a member of F.O.W.L. They're not exactly the most mentally sound bunch."

"True."

"The only thing is that we might have to keep this up a little longer than we thought. But I can do that."

"I think I can manage, too." She rested her head on his shoulder. "Besides, I don't think my dad will let her anywhere near me."

"Does he know what she did?"

"Yeah. That was the point where he told me that he never wanted her to come home."

"Well, at least your dad and I have that in common." She giggled and they stood back up, heading into the dining hall once again.

"Are you okay?" Della asked her aunt.

"I'm fine, Dells."

"Good."

June sat back down, trying to enjoy the rest of her meal.

* * *

The next couple days passed in a flurry of activity of trying to keep Rose convinced that yes, this was a very real wedding that was totally going to happen. And it seemed to be working. Verne refused to let Iris near June, as his youngest daughter had predicted. Daisy spent time bonding with her biological mother and grandfather while avoiding her grandmother because, oh yeah, Iris was her grandmother.

Scrooge, on the other hand, spent as much time as possible searching for the Lyre of Seasons. Dewey and Donald were helping him out since Huey and Della were both occupied with the 'wedding' planning. The day before the supposed ceremony was a rehearsal, which many of the guests looked nervous about. Verne walked June down the aisle towards Louie.

"All right," Rose stated from her place at the front. "Now is time for the vows…"

Louie's stomach twisted. Not from how close they were cutting it or the fact that Scrooge somehow had not yet found the lyre, but because part of him didn't want this to be fake. He wanted to marry June for real and that thought was terrifying because how do you bring up the fact that you want what was supposed to be a fake wedding to be your real one? He hadn't even given June a proper proposal (not that she'd appeared to care at the time).

"Llewellyn?" Rose asked. Her pronunciation of his name was strange. "Would you like to go first?"

"Uh, yeah. Just, uh, give me a second."

He hadn't prepared anything. He had thought Scrooge would've found the blasted thing by now and they'd be back in America. June gave him a gentle encouraging smile that made his stomach twist into knots all over again. Somehow he found the words and took a deep breath.

"June, when we were kids, I had a crush on you," he began. "A really big crush. And then we didn't see each other for over twenty years after you moved away. You came back into my life and suddenly those old feelings came rushing back, too. What started as a childhood crush became falling head over heels for you as an adult. You're smart and talented and beautiful and kind and… honestly, I'm a little scared for anyone who tries to hurt this family while you have a wrench in your hand." She laughed and April barely managed to stifle a squeal in the background. "I'm excited for what the future holds, and for you to officially join this family. Because I love you, June, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

June had a couple of tears in her eyes as she smiled at him, then she wiped some away.

"Jeez, how do I follow that up?"

"Just speak from the heart," Rose encouraged.

"Okay." She took a deep breath. "We were both the youngest in our families back when we were kids, and I think that helped us bond. You were always there supporting me, even when I crashed into you while testing my skates or broke my ankle doing tricks. It was hard to leave you behind but we found each other again. You've helped me find my footing and a job I truly love, not to mention a much bigger family that I never knew I needed until I had it. It means… a lot… that I'm able to be a part of all this when I was feeling alone for so long. Louie, I… I think you're one of the best people in the world and the fact that you want me to marry you is just still so unbelievable. But here we are, and I can't wait to start the rest of our lives."

"Well said, both of you," Rose complimented.

"Rings would come next," Huey stated, wiping tears from his eyes. "Then you'll be pronounced husband and wife and you'll kiss."

"Yeah, we know how it works, Huey," Louie snorted, rolling his eyes.

"I'm just saying. Anyway, that should just about do it. From there it's just a walk back down the aisle and the reception."

"So we're done?" June asked.

"Pretty much, yeah. Rehearsal dinner's not for another two hours. Go rest up because it's going to be long. Della and Dewey both insisted they're making speeches and Uncle Scrooge decided he was going to as well."

June nodded and everyone filed out of the room. She quickly grabbed Louie by the wrist and pulled him down the hall into a closet.

"What are you doing?" he whispered as he pulled on the chain to turn on the light.

"I can't do this."

"Do what?"

"A fake wedding. I can't do it."

"It's a little late for that!"

"No. I mean I don't want it to be… fake." She stared down at her feet, her hands fidgeting nervously. "I want to marry you for real. We both know we want to get married so why not make it real?"

He blinked and she froze, looking a little panicked.

"I know it's dumb and I know you're probably going to say no so I'm sorry for even bringing it—" She was cut off as he kissed her. When they broke apart, he held her close to him.

"Why would I say no?" he chuckled. "I, uh, was thinking the same thing."

"Oh. Sorry for freaking out."

"It's fine. Don't apologize." He took a deep breath. "Give me the ring."

"What?"

"If we're gonna do this for real, you're getting a proper proposal."

"In a closet?"

"It's just for us. As far as anyone else is concerned, I proposed to you at the Bin and not in a closet the day before our wedding."

She laughed, slipping the ring off her finger and handing it to him. He got down on one knee as best he could and held it up.

"June Duck, will you marry me… for real?"

"Yes, for real." He slid it back on her finger and she hugged him, laughing all the while. They stood back up and headed out to go let the family know about the change in plans.

* * *

"I'm sorry, you two are what?"

"Getting married for real," Louie repeated, squeezing June's hand.

"But what about not being ready? That was your entire hang-up about this plan!"

"Things change," June replied. "We know we want to spend the rest of our lives together and we have everything set up, so why not do it?"

"Because…" Scrooge faltered.

They had a point. There really didn't seem to be any reason to not go through with it now. Besides, it would be nice to see one of his nephews married to someone they loved who truly loved them back. Not like Dewey, who'd been left a heartbroken single father by that… he shook his head.

"Fine. But you'll have to let the others who knew the plan know."

"We will. Thank you, Scrooge."

"I think at this point you can call me Uncle Scrooge, lass."

"Well then, thank you, Uncle Scrooge." She gave him a hug and he smiled back.

Of course the rest of the guests were okay with the change in plans, even June's father. Verne only warned him to never hurt June, something that Louie had no problem agreeing to. And now that the wedding was real, it actually gave Scrooge more time to try and find the lyre before the ceremony.

However, the next morning, it was cloudy and storming. A bad omen for a wedding, usually. Scrooge went to speak to Rose, only to find her climbing the stairs to the roof with a box in her arms. She beckoned for him to follow and on the roof she opened the box to pull out… _the Lyre of Seasons_.

"You came to see this, didn't you?" she asked.

"Y-yes! How did you know?"

"I know many things, Scrooge McDuck." She began to pluck a tune, and as she did sunlight poured through the clouds, the storm banished. "I know you wish to protect this from those who would misuse it. But rest assured that there is no safer place for this than here. It has lain here longer than the castle walls and it will be here long after."

He narrowed his eyes.

"Rose… no, that's not right. Who are you really?"

"I think you know. After all, the castle is named for me."

"Branwen. Bride of the First King of Ireland and goddess of love."

"Correct." She put the lyre back. "So you can see how the lyre is safe with me."

"I agree. But I am confused."

"Tír na nÓg gets rather boring, honestly. So I spend time here instead. And nothing gives me more joy than seeing people find each other. Like your nephew and his bride." She picked up the box and motioned for him to follow. "I must thank you for coming, even if it was under false pretenses at first. Your family has provided me so much enjoyment over the past few days."

"I'll be sure to let them know."

"I'd best put this away before those two gombeens get their hands on it. I'll see you at the ceremony."

Branwen disappeared around a corner and Scrooge let out a relieved breath. The lyre was safe with a literal goddess protecting it. He headed towards Louie's room to let his nephew know that everything was fine now and they didn't have to worry about F.O.W.L after all. Louie was already dressed up and ready.

"Hey, Uncle Scrooge," he greeted him. "Storm cleared up fast."

"Yeah, about that…"

He told Louie about Branwen and when he finished, Louie let out a laugh.

"Is it weird that it makes complete sense to me? I think I'm desensitized to it by now."

"Not weird at all, lad. Ya sure you're ready to marry her?"

"If I'm not sure now, when will I ever be? I love her. This is just making it official."

"Good. I expect Donald and Della to have a cousin or two soon." Louie's face turned pink and he started spluttering, making his uncle laugh out loud. "I'm just messin' with ya, boy! You don't have to have 'em till you're ready."

"All right, old man. I'll see you again later."

Scrooge headed to check on June, who was in the process of having her hair done by Daisy and April. She looked positively radiant in her ankle-length wedding dress and minimal makeup. Webby and Della were bouncing on the bed excitedly while May was smiling at how happy everyone was.

"Everyone doin' okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine, Uncle Scrooge," June replied.

"I think Louie's gonna be at a loss for words, lass."

"I hope so."

"No, he will be," April stated, setting in the last pin. "Mark my words."

"Marking them!" Della sang, landing in a sitting position. Webby followed suit. "I'm so happy!"

"Looks like we're getting a happy ending!" giggled Daisy, sitting next to her friends. "I just kinda wish the bad guys weren't here."

"If they try anything I'm knocking Mom out," April snapped, growling. "Then I'm taking a vase to that Steelbeak guy's head."

"I can sic Donald on him," Della offered. "He kicked his butt during the whole Sword of Swanstantine thing."

"Please do, Della dear."

Down the hall, however, the rooster in question had seen Branwen take the box to its storage spot. Once she was gone he pried the door open as quietly as he could before picking up said box and opening it to find… the Lyre of Seasons.

"Crazy old lady," he chuckled. "How you gonna protect this with just a box?"

The Lyre lit up with some kind of green light, setting his hands on fire. He screamed in panic and dropped it. Behind him there was a chuckling.

"I knew ya'd fall for that, ya daft gombeen," the woman said.

"What was that?!"

"Faerie Fire. Doesn't hurt at all but it looks scary, donnit?"

"I'm taking the stupid harp!"

"Not on my watch." The lyre suddenly vanished and he growled, running to attack her. She side-stepped him with ease, causing him to land on the floor.

"I'll kill you!"

"Impossible. I cannot die." He lunged again and she was suddenly behind him. "I warned ya, Steelbeak. Cause trouble and I throw you out."

She clapped her hands and some of her mysterious servants came and picked him up. They lugged him down the stairs, him yelling and fighting against them all the way. The guests who were waiting downstairs watched with a bit of a laugh among them. Iris, on the other hand, narrowed her eyes and facepalmed before pulling out her phone to call Director Buzzard.

"Steelbeak has been thrown out."

_"Keep looking. The Lyre of Seasons cannot be taken by Scrooge McDuck."_

"Ask him what happened. I need to see this through."

_"Ah, your daughter's wedding. Might I remind you the last time you saw her before now that you nearly threw her off a building?"_

"That's irrelevant, sir. As her mother it's my duty to attend."

_"Find the Lyre during the reception then. Just find it and get out."_

She hung up.

The ceremony went without a hitch as Louie and June repeated their vows from the day before and took their rings from Donald, who'd been the ring-bearer mostly willingly. Everyone cheered as they were officially married and shared a kiss.

"JUNE'S OFFICIALLLY MY AUNT! JUNE'S OFFICIALLY MY AUNT!" Della cheered, jumping up and down excitedly. In the excitement, Iris slipped away and went to where Steelbeak had been caught. An empty box sat on the floor abandoned and slightly scorched from some kind of fire.

_The Lyre must have been in that box…_

But now where was it?

Before she could figure it out, she was carried out of the building, right past her celebrating former family. They didn't even notice that she was gone.

As for the newlyweds, it was as you'd expect from a wedding reception. Lots of dancing and music and food. The bouquet was caught by Gosalyn, who locked eyes with Huey and both of them blushed profusely. It was really the perfect kind of day.

Branwen approached the two with a smile.

"Hello," she greeted them.

"Hello, Branwen," Louie replied.

"I just wanted to offer my sincere congratulations. Honestly, you managed to trick me, which doesn't happen often."

"Trick you?" June repeated.

"Most of the time when a scammer comes through those doors I can tell in an instant whether or not the wedding is genuine. But I didn't realize yours was fake until I overheard you yesterday. All I can really say is that I'm glad you realized that this was meant to happen." She grinned broader. "I _am_ a goddess of love, after all."

"Thank you for everything," Louie told her.

"Just enjoy yourselves, okay?"

Branwen walked away and Della ran up, nearly tackling her aunt and uncle in a hug.

"Hey, Dells," June laughed.

"This was an awesome wedding. I've never been to one before!"

"I doubt it'll be the last, if Huey and Gos are any indication," Louie joked.

"Ooh, another aunt. Should I start making plans for that?"

"Let them figure it out on their own. We did, and look where we are."

It was a good place for a new beginning.


	4. Babies and Boys

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on a post by ducks-gen-swap. We discussed this one at length.

It had been years since Louie had been this nervous in a doctor's office.

He tapped his foot anxiously as June read a magazine beside him. Her hand rested on top of his, the sensation soothing him as they locked fingers. She gave him a gentle smile.

"We don't know anything for sure, Lionheart. It's just a test."

"I still don't see why you didn't just go buy one from the pharmacy."

"Nope. Don't trust them. May tested negative on four of them and we still had Daisy."

He sighed and sat back.

"How long will the results take?"

"We'll have them by the end of the day. Dr. Sawyer promised that she'd call me as soon as they were ready."

"Mrs. Duck?" called the nurse.

"Right here," June replied, standing up. Louie was right behind her as they went into the exam room. The nurse went through standard procedure—checking heart rate, blood pressure, and so on.

"I see that you're here for a blood test?"

"Yes, ma'am." The nurse looked from her to Louie, then nodded.

"If you'll just extend your arm, ma'am, I'll take a sample to send to the lab."

June obeyed and closed her eyes, gritting her teeth. Louie remembered that when they'd been kids she'd hated needles. She'd once told him a story about her father having to hold her down to get a tetanus shot when she was twelve. He had her other hand in his, though, and gave her a comforting squeeze. The nurse finished taking the sample and wrapped June's arm in a bandage.

"I'd suggest taking some pamphlets with you, in case it's positive," the nurse told the couple. "You'll have them in a few hours. Just go home and we'll call."

"Thank you," June sighed.

After checking out, they headed out to the car. Louie had insisted on driving them there and back, so for the first time in a while June was in the passenger seat. She fiddled with her hands nervously.

"What do we do if it's positive?" Louie asked.

"Prepare for a baby," she replied. "I want to have kids. I really do. I love Della and Donald and Webby, but this one would be ours. Our baby."

"Yeah, or babies. This family seems to have the genetics for multiples. We're both triplets and Dewey had twins."

"All we can do is wait, Lou." She gave him a smile. "For what it's worth, I think you'll be a great dad."

"Thanks. And you'll be a great mom. Ooh, boy, this kid's gonna grow up with a mom and a dad. That's the first time in a while." June nodded.

"I think we'll be okay."

They arrived home and June went upstairs to take a nap. She hoped it would calm her nerves. Her husband, on the other hand, turned on the TV. He'd taken the day off of work because he'd known he wouldn't be able to focus on anything else until those results came in. Dewey came in with a confused look on his face.

"Louie? Why are you home?"

"I went with June to a doctor's appointment and we're waiting on the test results."

"What kind of test?" Huey asked, the two older brothers sitting on the couch on either side of the youngest triplet.

"Honestly… we think she might be… pregnant. She didn't want to take a home test so she had a blood test done at the doctor."

"Wait—I'm gonna be an uncle?!" Dewey gasped excitedly.

"We're still—"

"A baby? Are you two sure you're ready?" Huey inquired worriedly. "It's a lot of work and with our family's genetics you're more than likely going to have more than one to take care of. Not to mention setting up a nursery and a hatching plan…" He tapped his chin.

"Guys, please stop. We don't know if she's—"

"I can make the same setup I made for the twins!"

"I'm going to be the cool uncle!"

"What in blue blazes are the three of ya talkin' about?" Scrooge snapped, coming into the room.

"June might be pregnant," Huey replied. Louie sank down on the couch.

So much for watching TV to destress…

"Pregnant? Oh, I'd love to have another wee bairn around the house. Wait, might be?"

"She had a blood test about two hours ago and we're waiting on the results," Louie explained with a sigh. "She doesn't trust home tests because May had a false negative on four of them."

"Smart lass. Well, be sure to let me know so we can make preparations!" As Scrooge once again left the room, June passed by on her way to the front door. Her keys were in hand.

"Wait, where are you going?" Louie asked, getting up.

"It's almost three-thirty. I have to pick up the kids from school."

"I can do it. It's not a big deal." Her eyes darted nervously and she gave him a fake smile. "June, what's going on?"

"There's an… extra person… coming home with them today. Della has an assignment and her partner's coming here to work with her on it." She stared flatly at her husband and brothers-in-law. "Her partner is a boy."

Louie wanted to laugh as she silently counted down on her fingers—three… two… one…

"A _boy_?" Huey repeated. "It's not Donald?"

"No. It's someone we don't know, and it's the reason she's been acting weird all week. If I had to guess I'd say she's experiencing her first big crush."

There was a nearly audible sound of glass shattering.

"I'm sorry, no," Dewey insisted. "My baby girl's too young for boys. There is no way she has her first crush already. She's only fifteen."

"I had mine when I was ten. And so did Louie."

"On _each other_. You two were best friends first!" June crossed her arms.

" _That's_ why I'm picking them up. All of you had better be on your best behavior because this is a somewhat delicate situation." She smirked. "Besides, if anyone _did_ hurt Della, well… I know how to use a wrench for more than fixing machines."

She let out a chuckle and closed the door behind her.

"Your wife is terrifying," Dewey informed his younger brother. "I think she _is_ pregnant."

"To be fair, she has more experience with teenage girls than we do," Huey admitted. "She used to be one and lived with two more."

"Look, we'll meet this kid and then we'll decide what to do," Louie sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "For now, I need to find something else to focus on."

* * *

"Whoa, seriously? You guys live here?"

Spencer's eyes were wide as they pulled up to the manor. Della nodded, feeling relieved that he didn't seem to be put off by the wealth her family had. June put the car in park and the others got out, but Della felt her aunt's hand on her arm.

"What's up?" she asked.

"I have to warn you—I told your dad and uncles a boy was coming over."

"Aw, come on!"

"Hey, it would've been worse if I hadn't. I grew up with a protective dad and I know how it goes."

"Your dad isn't my dad. My dad's cool."

"He called you his baby girl and said you were too young for boys."

"Okay, yeah, this is gonna be a disaster."

Della headed into the house and found that Spencer was staring around with wide eyes. She could also see her father watching from the doorway to the living room with a narrowed eye. Huey was right there with him. June came in and motioned for them to cut it out.

"Hey, Donald, can you show Spencer to the dining room?" Della asked her brother. "I need to talk to Dad real quick."

"Sure. C'mon." The two boys walked off and Della went into the living room, where her father and uncles were pretending to have been watching TV the whole time.

"Don't you dare," she told them emphatically.

"What?" Huey inquired.

"Don't go all…" She rolled her hands, trying to think of what to say. "Don't go Great-Uncle Verne on me!"

"Okay, listen," Louie sighed, turning off the TV. "Guys, she's fifteen. She can handle it, I swear."

"Thanks, Uncle Louie."

"No problem, hotdogs. Just go work on your project."

Della ran out of the room and Dewey attempted to follow before his sister-in-law put up her leg to block the door.

"Nope."

"June! Come on! She's my kid!"

"And you need to give her space. I know you're worried because of what happened with she-who-must-not-be-named, but might I remind you I watched my sister go through literally the exact same situation?"

"I…" He faltered for a moment, then shook his head.

"I at least need to talk to the kid if Della has a crush on him. It's that simple."

June's phone went off in her pocket and she and Louie both immediately stiffened. She put down her foot to answer it.

"Hello?" She paused, then relaxed a little, listening to the person on the other end speak. "Yes, Marsha. I'll be down there in ten minutes."

"What's going on?" Huey asked her.

"A problem with a customer down at the garage. Probably some Karen who thinks we're ripping her off. I'll be back. In the meantime, you three behave yourselves."

"Good luck, babe," Louie told her, giving her a thumbs-up.

"Thanks. Love you!"

She left the room and Dewey took the opportunity to slip down the hall into the dining room. His brothers weren't far behind as Della set up her laptop at the table.

"So… your whole family lives here?"

"Me, my brother, my dad, my uncles, and my aunt. She's the one who drove us."

"Okay, so what's our topic?"

"Ms. Berry assigned us to research volcanoes. Didn't you pay attention in class?"

"I…" He had a slight pink dusting to his cheeks, so Dewey decided to intervene.

"Hey, kids," he greeted the pair. "How's it going?"

"Dad…" Della said in a warning tone.

"I'm just checking up on my _only daughter_. So, what's your name, kid?"

"Spencer. Spencer Greene." He looked uncomfortable. "Um… Della?"

"Dad, please just give us some space to work."

"I will, I will. I've been to a few active volcanoes in my time."

"Is that how you lost your eye?" whispered Spencer.

"Nah. I lost this when a rocket I was piloting crash-landed on the moon. My helmet shattered and took out my eye."

Spencer looked terrified, so Della got up and began to physically shove her dad towards the door.

"Thank you, Dad, but we've got this covered. I promise."

"If you say so."

"Don't mind me!" Huey called, walking by and making Della fall forwards. "Just making you kids some snacks!"

"We don't need snacks," Della growled. "We're fine, Uncle Huey."

"No, you can't tackle homework on an empty stomach. I know you haven't eaten since lunch."

"Let me help you," Dewey offered.

Della grit her teeth in annoyance. Where was June? She'd been supposed to handle this.

"Spence, could you excuse me a second?" she chuckled nervously, changing her tune as she rushed for the living room.

_Please be there. Please be there…_

Her prayers weren't heard as the only person in the room was her uncle Louie, tapping at his phone and checking his messages. June was nowhere to be found.

"Uncle Louie, where's June?"

"She had to run down to her garage. Somebody's complaining and demanded to speak to the owner."

"Ugh!" She buried her face in the arm of the couch.

"Your dad driving you crazy?"

"Not just him! Uncle Huey, too! They're all over the dining room and we can't focus and I'd suggest we go up to my room but that would probably make their heads explode or something."

"They're just worried about you getting hurt." Della suddenly realized exactly what was happening and groaned.

"Okay, so I like Spencer. He's really nice and smart. And kinda cute. I just wish they'd leave us alone." Louie's phone blipped and he let out a sigh of relief.

"Listen, June will be home in about five minutes. Stall until then and she'll unload a can of 'listen to me or perish' on them."

"Help me?" She had a pleading look on her face.

"Sure."

When they returned to the dining room, Spencer was looking very uncomfortable at the table. Huey had set out snacks and Dewey was talking about how he'd survived on the moon while chewing nothing but black licorice-flavored gum. Della quickly grabbed her father's arm and pulled him out of his chair.

"Okay, Dad, please go upstairs or something."

"But I was just getting to the part about the moon mite that ate my ship—"

"You can tell it some other time."

"She's right, you know," Louie said. Spencer's eyes landed on the third man and he decided that the whole situation was more than he could handle for now.

"Sorry, Della, I have to go."

"Wait, Spence—"

"I'll text you later and we can meet at the library or something. Bye!"

He grabbed his backpack and ran for the door, pulling out his phone as he left. Della was right on his heels, her father and uncles not far behind her.

"I'll see you then? Text me!"

The door slammed and that was when Huey and Dewey realized that June had been right. Della was steaming mad now. And to make things even better, June came in and she did _not_ look pleased.

"What the frick was that?!" Della snapped, whirling around… only to find Dewey and Huey had disappeared. Louie was left alone.

"I left for literally fifteen minutes and you already ran off her lab partner." June slow-clapped and had a deadpan expression.

"I did nothing," Louie insisted. "It was those two. Dewey's out in his hiding spot probably. No clue about Huey."

June sighed deeply and leaned against the door.

"Dells, let me know if you find them. I have a little talking-to that I need to give out."

"Right." She stomped upstairs probably to go scream into her pillow. June's attention turned to her husband.

"June, I'm sorry. I can't think straight right now—"

"I know you can't. I should've told her she couldn't have him over but I just wanted something to distract me. This is so… stressful, just waiting for news."

"Wait, what's going on?" Della asked from the stairs, coming back down. Her anger was clearly forgotten as she was concerned for her favorite aunt.

"Well, Dells, I went to the doctor today—"

"Oh no, please tell me you're not dying."

"No, sweetie, I'm not dying. They took some of my blood to test because I may be pregnant."

"You mean I'm getting a cousin?!" Her eyes were wide.

"Nothing is certain," Louie warned. "We've been waiting on them to call all afternoon with the results."

"Can I wait with you guys? I don't want to see Dad right now…"

"Sure."

The three sat down in the room Louie and June shared and June anxiously kept glancing at her phone.

"Wait a second, why didn't you just do a home test?" Della wondered aloud.

"I don't trust home tests," June replied, crossing her arms. "Your aunt May had a false negative in college. That's how we got Daisy."

"She-who-must-not-be-named had one, too," Louie added. "But some good came out of it since we got you and Donald."

Della laid back on the bed between her aunt and uncle.

"I really hope that you guys have a baby. You deserve one after putting up with me and Donald and Webby for so long."

"Thanks, Dells. But… do you think I'd be a good mom?"

"You're an amazing aunt. And you've already got real mom instincts. I've known that since the day we met when you kept me from falling out of a speeding car."

"Ha. Yeah."

"It'll be okay," Louie assured her.

"I hope you're right."

The phone went off in June's hands and she quickly answered it.

"Yes, hello? This is June… my results. I'd like to hear them, please." She paused and her face fell a little. "Right. Okay. Thank you."

She hung up and Della gave her a hug.

"It was negative," June sighed. "I'm not pregnant."

Louie felt a sense of disappointment but gave her a gentle look as he took her hand. Della took the opportunity to slip out of the room in case things got gross.

"We'll have a kid," he promised. "I want to be a dad and you'll be the best mom. I'll be the strict parent so you can be the fun one."

"Thanks, Lionheart." She hugged him tightly.

Downstairs, Dewey and Huey had emerged from their respective hiding places, hoping that June and Louie had managed to calm down their daughter/niece. They found Della sitting on the stairs, looking grumpy with her arms crossed.

"Della, we're sorry," Dewey sighed. "It's just… I missed out on ten years of your life. I'm not ready to let you go yet."

"And you're _not_. Even if I was dating someone I won't be leaving for a while."

"Definitely," Huey agreed, sitting down next to her. "And you know, next time, we'll stay out of the way."

"Next time I'm asking Aunt June to guard the door. And I'm giving her a wrench."

"Fair enough," Dewey admitted, sitting on his daughter's other side.

"By the way, Aunt June's a little sad right now. She, um… got her test results."

"Oh." Dewey bit his lip.

"Uncle Louie's with her right now. I think they were about to get gross so I left."

"Good call."

They sat there for a few moments until Della's phone buzzed. She pulled it out to find a text from Spencer, asking to meet at the library the next morning. A feeling of relief swept over her.

"He still wants to be my partner for the project, at least." Della narrowed her eyes. "Can you two handle that?"

"Yeah. As long as you don't need our help," Huey promised.

"Thanks." She sent another text, this one they couldn't quite see, but before too much longer there were footsteps on the stairs behind them.

"I warned you both," June stated, crossing her arms. "Next time, listen to me."

"We will," they sighed in unison.

"Good." She made her way to the bottom of the stairs. "I'll see you guys at dinner. I'm going to go work out in the garage for a bit."

"Bye!" Della called.

* * *

The following morning, Louie awoke because June was rushing to the bathroom. There was one right off their room, so he could hear her retching. Immediately he hopped out of bed and rushed to check on her. She was panting next to the toilet, looking miserable.

"What's wrong?" he asked, kneeling beside her.

"I feel sick."

"You wanna go back to the doctor?"

"I think it's just a bug. I'll be fine." He frowned.

"June, how accurate are blood tests?"

"According to Dr. Sawyer, ninety-nine percent." She froze and retched again.

"Okay, with this family, we'd probably be that one percent." June blinked and let out a groan.

"Great. What is with our family and false negatives?"

"I dunno, bug. I can go buy a home test if you're willing to take it."

"Please do. I want to know."

"Do you need anything else?" She gagged.

"Ginger ale, please."

"I'll be back."

He quickly threw on his clothes and ran downstairs, passing the twins on their way down to breakfast. They called out good morning but he was already on his way out the door. Finding what he needed at the nearby pharmacy was easy and he was home again within ten minutes of leaving. His brothers gave him questioning looks as he ran up the stairs quicker than they'd seen him move since they were kids trying to get to the tree first on Christmas.

June managed to down some of the ginger ale before she took the test and they patiently waited for the results. The timer went off and they looked. The little screen said, clear as day, 'pregnant'.

They were going to have a baby for real.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will do more with this later.
> 
> So long and thanks for all the fish!


	5. Quack Pack!  Alternate Version

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A chapter based on an actual episode. This is a first.

_Theme song:_

_Huey! Dewey! Louie!_

_Scrooge!_

_Webby & Mrs. Beakley!_

_Della!_

_Donald & the Phooey Bunch!_

_And introducing: June!_

"Let's go over the checklist one more time."

Huey stared down at his notepad as Louie carried the box of photo supplies behind him.

"Lights, check. Photographer hired, check. Adorable outfits for the twins and Webby?" He pulled out three color-coordinated outfits, two dresses and one little suit. "Check."

"Huey, I think you're putting too much emphasis on this," Louie sighed, setting the box down on the coffee table. "It's just a photo."

"Louie, every year I try to get a perfect family photo and every year, something goes wrong." He pulled out his phone and began to swipe through some previous examples.

"Hey, that bear was _very_ apologetic."

The door opened and Scrooge walked in with Della and Dewey.

"Dewey, you're supposed to discourage your child from jumping off the roof, not do it with her," the old man admonished his nephew.

"But I jumped off the roof all the time on the moon!" Dewey protested. "Besides, it's my job as a father to show her how to 'Dew' it right."

"Besides, we could probably charge people to watch him do it," Louie added. Scrooge lifted a finger to protest, then appeared deep in thought.

"Okay, so that's most of you. Where's Donald?" Huey asked.

"In the basement," Della replied. "He's practicing."

"I'll go check on him." Dewey slid across the floor and towards the door to the basement while Huey let out a groan. As if on cue, Mrs. Beakley and Webby came down from the ceiling, both looking ready for combat.

"Mrs. B, what's going on?"

"There's been a dangerous enemy agent breaking into homes in the area," she replied. "I'm ready for anything."

"Oh, great, just what I need," groaned Huey. "An enemy agent."

"Hey, we can still handle this," Louie assured him. "In this family, aren't we supposed to expect the unexpected?"

The doorbell rang.

"Ah, see? The photographer's here already. I'll just open it up and…"

He opened the door to find June—dressed in denim overalls and a purple shirt. She smiled brightly.

"June? What are you doing here?" he asked.

"Della invited me to be in the family photo." Immediately Louie looked to his niece, who smirked as June came into the house.

"She might be your on-again off-again girlfriend, but she's my aunt all the time. That means she's part of the family."

June let out a laugh and gave Della a hug.

"Oh, er, June dear," Scrooge called from the stairs. "I could use a hand in my office if you don't mind. You and Della could be a big help."

"Coming, Scrooge!" The two females headed upstairs while Huey glanced around in confusion.

"Louie… does something seem off to you?"

"Like what?"

"I can't quite put my finger on it yet, but something feels wrong. Like this isn't what we should be worrying about."

"Well, have fun figuring it out. I'm going to go think of how to avoid my currently-ex-girlfriend and spend some time with Donald and Dewey."

_Transition: Della skateboarding across the screen in full padding_

"Hey, Uncle Louie!" Donald greeted his youngest uncle from where he was standing with his guitar. Two other kids were standing behind him and Dewey was on drums.

"Thought you were helping Huey out today," Dewey pointed out.

"I was. Then June got here because your daughter's a traitor."

"Sounds about right," scoffed Donald. "Aunt June is Della's favorite non-parent relative."

"Don, they aren't even related."

"I know." Donald strummed a few notes.

"Louie, this time two weeks from now, you two will be back together again," Dewey chuckled. "Why hide from her? It's ridiculous."

"Because the last time I saw her we broke up."

"I thought she said you were taking a break?" Donald questioned, tilting his head.

"We've been through this so many times already I lost track."

"My heart bleeds for your love life, but we need to practice. Either stay and listen or go upstairs and face your fears."

"I'm not afraid of June."

"The fact you're hiding says otherwise," Dewey pointed out.

Louie rolled his eyes.

"Look, it's complicated, okay? I love her but I keep putting my foot in my mouth."

"So tell her that, not us."

"How do I even bring it up?"

He headed back upstairs, passing Launchpad carrying snacks on his way.

"I brought snacks! The car's busted, but I saw June's out front. I bet she could fix it up, no problem."

"Thanks for this, LP," Dewey told him as the pilot set down the snacks.

"It's fine. I don't mind helping out."

"Let's start, then!" Donald announced. "One, two, three!"

_Transition: Donald playing guitar and sliding on his knees_

"How goes the office—yikes."

Huey froze as he spotted June attempting to fix a duct that had fallen from the ceiling. She was actually doing a decent job but the office itself was in pretty rough shape. Della was holding the ladder in place and waved nervously at her uncle.

"Hi! We're almost done."

"Are you sure? The photographer's going to be here any minute now."

"I have a phone and a phone timer," June pointed out with a smile. "If he doesn't make it I can do it."

"Thanks, June, but I need the right lighting for this. According to the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook…" He pulled it out of his back pocket.

"Jeez, you're still relying on that thing? You kept it under your hat when we were kids."

"It has something for everything, June. Just because you and your sisters never joined…"

"I was more interested in skating than scouts."

"Ha, yeah." He opened up the book and blinked in confusion. "It's blank."

"Blank?" Della repeated.

"Completely blank. It's like… what? I don't understand…"

"You might've run it through the wash," June suggested. "I've done that a couple times with my wallet late at night."

"I'd never let anything happen to the JWG!"

"I think this photo thing's getting to him," Della muttered to her favorite aunt.

"I think you're right."

"I found more duct tape!" Scrooge announced.

"Actually, come to think of it, something seems really wrong here," Huey stated. "Like… shouldn't we be out on an adventure or something?"

"Hey, just came to see if you all needed any help," Louie spoke up, coming into the room.

"Louie, I think we have a problem."

"What kind of problem?"

"I don't know yet, but we need to figure this out before the—" Huey shook his head. "Why am I worrying about a photo? I love taking candids of the kids."

"Maybe you didn't sleep well."

"With _your_ snoring, I believe it," June said, tearing off the duct tape.

"Hey, you're the one who's a blanket thief!" Louie shot back.

"Me, steal blankets? Never."

"Ugh! Nobody's listening! Why are you two arguing about sleeping habits? You aren't even together."

"We all know that's in flux," Scrooge chuckled.

Huey ran his hands through his hair in worry. Louie sighed and grabbed his arm.

"C'mon, big bro. Let's get you some water or something. I think you're dehydrated."

"I am _not_ dehydrated. I drink perfectly adequate amounts of water, thank you very much."

"Yeah, sure."

"Wait, why are the lights fading? Where's that music coming from? HELP!"

_Commercial for PEP!, then a cut to the basement, where Dewey and Donald have just finished their set._

"We sound great!" Donald announced. "Wonder if anyone else would like it…?"

"Only way to know is to try."

The door to the basement opened and suddenly a man was coming down, followed closely by a suspicious-looking Webby. He had black hair and golden eyes, wearing a fedora and a matching gray trench-coat.

"I'm telling you, young lady, I'm a photographer!" he insisted.

"Sure, _secret agent_." The man stumbled over the last step and landed on the floor. "Boys, keep an eye on him. I'm going upstairs to grab some stuff."

"Webby, we've said no kidnapping strangers to ruthlessly question them," Dewey admonished.

"But he's a secret agent!"

"An agent!" gasped Launchpad as Webby headed back upstairs. "You guys, he could be your big break!"

"What?" questioned the man, looking confused.

"Launchpad… you're right!" Donald cheered. "C'mon, we have to play for him. Ready? Again! One, two, three, four!"

_Transition: Webby swinging across the screen on a grappling hook._

Huey sat at the kitchen island, looking unsettled. Louie set a can of PEP in front of him, opening it before opening one for himself. The eldest triplet took it and shook a little.

"There was a commercial. Louie, I don't think things are normal. It was a PEP commercial and the streets were filled with soda and…"

"Calm down. Here, we can reschedule this for another day—"

"No, something is deeply wrong and it's not the photo!" Huey knocked the can of soda over and stood up straight. He could hear laughter coming from seemingly nowhere and he ran out of the room.

Louie picked up the can, suddenly looking very concerned before he followed his brother.

_Transition: All three kids being cute kids dancing together._

Upstairs June looked satisfied at the job she'd done.

"There. Vent's fixed. Now for the rest of the room—"

She was interrupted as the door flew open.

"WE ARE TRAPPED IN A TV SHOW!" Huey announced.

"I'm sorry, what?" Della asked, tilting her head.

"You heard me, Della. We are trapped in some kind of TV show. There's laughter coming from nowhere, commercials, weird transitions…" He went over to the wall and used a nearby object to smash a hole in it before sticking his hand in. "No insulation or wiring because this is a set! None of this is real!"

"Huey, this is getting to you," Scrooge sighed. "Let me take over—"

"No, look, I'll prove it. Have you noticed this room only has three walls?"

"Don't be ridiculous. Of course there's a fourth wall?"

"Have you actually looked at it?"

All four of them looked out to see… stage lights? And a crowd?

"Ooh, how'd we miss that?" June asked. Louie came in, panting from trying to keep up with Huey.

"Listen…"

"No, he's right!" Della chimed in. "We need to get out of here!"

She ran for the door and opened it, only to find it bricked over. June pressed her hands against it, then stared at them in confusion.

"Yeah, it's solid. How are we gonna get out of here?"

"Aunt June, do you have any tools?"

"I always carry a wrench on me… for reasons…"

"We'll… come back to that," Huey stated. "For now, since we're in a TV sitcom, what we need are shenanigans!"

Everyone suddenly seemed to find pick-axes out of nowhere and they began to tunnel through the floor. Next thing they knew they were falling into the basement, where Webby had a meat tenderizer and Mrs. Beakley was trying to get it away from her while Donald and Dewey's band finished their set. They stared at the group who'd fallen through the ceiling.

"Where did you guys come from?" Dewey chuckled.

"Upstairs," June replied, dusting herself off and picking Della up.

"We're trapped in a TV show!" Della informed her father.

"Wait, how did that happen?"

"Oh, boy, first an agent, then a TV show?" Launchpad gasped excitedly. "Things are looking up for the band!"

"Seriously, how did we end up in a TV show? What happened before this morning?"

"Uh, easy," Louie answered. "Della broke a vase and learned an important lesson about honesty!"

"Not last episode, Lou," June sighed.

"If only I could remember," Della mused, stroking her chin. The world around her began to ripple and fill with smoke, making her yelp in panic.

"Wait, that's it!" Huey told her. "We need a flashback!"

"Guys…" Louie started, but Huey cut him off.

"Everyone, thoughtfully stroke your chins and look off into the distance!"

Everyone but Louie obeyed…

They were in a nest high above some rather vicious scorpions, Della and June searching through the hundreds of lamps that sat inside the nest while everyone else tried to keep the scorpions away.

"Keep looking!" Della encouraged. "According to Isabella Finch's journal, the Lost Lamp of Collie Baba has to be here somewhere!"

"How many lamps did he have?" Donald groaned, throwing a rock and hitting a scorpion.

"All it took was a fight against scorpions, going through the gauntlet, and a four-day trip through the desert on foot!" Webby added, finding a sword.

"Ugh, I hate bugs," June muttered, flicking a tiny one off her. "Louie, you having any luck?"

"Not much!" he called back, continuing to dig.

He glanced back at the family, looking worried as they fought off their attackers.

"Ugh. Sometimes I wish we could have normal family problems," he sighed, his hand brushing a lamp. It glowed brightly and smoke shot out to reveal a genie.

"Your wish is my command!" the genie announced, snapping his fingers. "SHABLOOEY!"

Then they were back in the basement. Everyone's eyes were on Louie.

" _You_?" Huey gasped.

"Okay, yes, it was me!" he groaned. "I wished for this!"

"Why?!"

"I wish for it at least ten times a day! How was I supposed to know there was a magical lamp under my hand this time?!"

"Wait, that genie in the flashback looked awfully familiar…" Webby pointed out. They all looked towards the photographer/agent, who was attempting to hop away in the chair Webby had tied him to.

"Uh, hi?" he greeted them.

"Stop right there, photographer! Or should I say spy? Or should I say _genie_?!"

"Okay, you caught me." He turned into the genie again. "My name is Gene the genie. Louie wished for this world where he could have normal family problems."

"Wait, this is normal?" Della questioned.

"How long were you in that lamp?" Donald inquired.

"Ages. Since the year 1990. This was quality back then." June blinked and looked towards Louie.

"So you asked for the life of your dreams?" she asked.

"No, if that was true, we wouldn't be on-again off-again."

"What." Her cheeks burned bright pink and he backpedaled.

"Never mind. The point is this is a good reality." He looked to the rest of the family. "Nobody gets hurt or lost. I'm not alone or caught in the middle."

Dewey looked guilty, but Della looked to her uncle.

"But I like adventuring. Even if we get hurt, we get picked right back up again."

"She's right, Louie," Huey added. "You're not alone, ever. You have all of us now. We're not going to leave."

"We promise," June spoke up, taking his hand. "We're a family, so you're stuck with us whether you like it or not."

"Yeah!" Donald cheered, latching onto Louie's back.

"Well… how much longer is this supposed to last?" Della asked Gene.

"Hm, let's see… in two weeks, you and Webby struggle to hide a snake in the house. And next week, Louie gets jealous that June and Launchpad are getting along well and it kicks off a love triangle that lasts until the end of the season."

"WHAT/!" the three points of the supposed triangle yelped.

"NOOOOO!" Della wailed.

"Man, I hate that trope," Donald sighed.

"At some point Launchpad gets a stalker who goes after June and the family has to protect her, and after that, the show will go for more seasons until it gets cancelled and eventually gets a reboot… so forever?"

"I can just wish us out of here, right?" Louie asked.

"In theory. But there's a problem—you need to find the lamp. And the wish _will_ try to preserve itself."

As if to prove him right, boos came from the audience as horrible fleshy things began to make their way forwards to attack them. The family began to run down the hall, trying to escape the horrible creatures. June tripped over an exposed cable and Louie didn't hesitate to help her up and pull her along.

"You know, talking helps!" she told him as they ran.

"We can talk when we're out of here!"

There they were in the foyer, which was falling apart at the seams. It must've been the center of the wish where they could find the lamp. Everyone fanned out to search. Launchpad opened a door to find a crazed-looking chickadee.

"Launchpad! I'm here!" she breathed.

"Oh no, my stalker!" he gasped.

"I'm not a stalker, darling! I love you!" She moved towards him and June landed a kick to her face.

"Hey, hands off!" she snapped.

"You! You're the reason he doesn't love me!" The woman tackled June and they began to fight.

"This isn't love—it's _obsession_!"

"You'll never love him like I do!"

"What are you even talking about?!"

"KILL HER, AUNT JUNE!" Della cheered, removing a seat cushion to reveal a snake. "AH!"

"This plotline was very poorly thought through!" Webby yelled.

"Everyone's a critic," Gene sighed.

June managed to get the upper hand and kicked the woman back through the door, slamming it shut before one of the fleshy creatures from the audience leapt onto her. It was total chaos as someone spotted the lamp in the chandelier. They had no way up… until Dewey had an idea.

"Della!" he called. "Think you can get it?"

"How?"

"You're pretty light, kiddo!" She ran over and he gave her a boost into the air, sending her up just enough to latch onto the edge. The force sent the lamp falling to the ground. Louie leapt to catch it, managing to grab it and catch Della when she let go.

Then they were back in the giant nest.

"We're out!" Donald cheered, everyone whooping happily. Louie looked guiltily at the family, the feeling of having screwed up badly sticking in his mind.

"Hey, it's okay," Della assured him. "Everyone wishes their family could be different from time to time."

"I know that feeling," chuckled June.

"Just please talk to us about how you're feeling from now on, okay?" Huey requested.

"I will, I promise."

"Hey, you know you have one more wish, right?" Gene spoke up.

Above the fireplace at McDuck Manor that night, there was a family portrait of them all kicking butt together. That was their normal, and it was perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a kinda angsty chapter for next time.
> 
> So long and thanks for all the fish!


	6. Rescue Mission

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A follow up to chapter four and one that's going to be painful for me to write.
> 
> Warning: Kidnapping, trauma, violence, and language.

"Louie?"

The nephew in green looked up to see Scrooge in the doorway.

"Hey, Uncle Scrooge. Just finishing up some paperwork."

"Well, when you're done, we'll be going home together. There's a bit of a surprise at home."

"A surprise?" Louie quickly read over the last of his papers and put them in the finished pile. "There, let's go."

Uncle and nephew headed for the elevator and stepped on.

"You've already done a lot for me and June, you know. We don't need much else."

"Nonsense. You're about to become a father."

Yes, Louie Duck was about to become a father for the first time. Him and June's first egg was due to hatch in a week and in accordance with that Scrooge had given him a week off in preparation. Not to mention the four months of paternity leave. It was mostly because in their family eggs tended to hatch when they wanted. Huey, Dewey, and Louie had been early but June and her sisters had been late so it was up in the air.

The ride back to the manor was the same as ever, just with Launchpad driving as he had been since June had laid the egg. At the house, they entered and Louie immediately rushed up to his and June's room. She was sitting on the rocking chair Huey had bought them, their daughter's egg nestled in her arms.

"Hey, bug," he greeted her. "How's junior?"

"She's a wiggly one. Huey says Della was the same way as an egg. I'm pretty sure she's taking after her cousin."

Gently she laid the egg in Louie's arms and he cradled it, amazed at the fact that their daughter was already moving.

"You think of a name yet?"

"I was looking through some more obscure names, and I think I found one."

"Really?"

"Yeah, it's—"

She was cut off as Della threw their door open.

"Aunt June! Uncle Louie! Come downstairs!"

"Okay, Dells, we're coming!" laughed June.

Louie carefully laid their daughter's egg in the cradle, pulling the gold-colored blanket Goldie had sent over the white shell. He and June followed their niece down the stairs to the living room, where a party of sorts had been set up.

"Surprise!" Huey sang. "It's a baby shower!"

"We all bought gifts for the baby!" Donald added. "I wrote her a lullaby!"

"Aw, that's so sweet…" June breathed.

"Open mine first!" Della insisted, pushing it over.

Before June could touch it, she stiffened as a sick feeling settled in her gut.

"Something's wrong," she whispered, turning towards the doorway.

"What is it?" Dewey asked.

Suddenly from upstairs there was the sound of breaking glass. June was already rushing for the stairs with Louie right on her heels. They opened the door to their bedroom just in time to see none other than Black Heron escaping back through the window… egg in hand. June let out a scream of fury and nearly toppled out the window herself as she bolted towards the woman. She was saved by Louie grabbing her arm and pulling her back as Black Heron cackled above them on the rope ladder to a helicopter.

And just as quickly as she'd arrived, she was gone.

June sank to her knees, eyes full of tears as the helicopter vanished into the sky and the air settled. Nobody said a word, shock having swept over them. It had been years since anyone from F.O.W.L had dared attack the family, and now it was just… the egg was gone. Still viable, hopefully. F.O.W.L would likely want the egg alive for some kind of ransom. But the attack had been so… so… audacious.

Dewey was the first to break the silence at seeing June tremble.

"June. They won't get away with taking her."

Silence.

"We'll get her back, even if we have to tear down whatever hole they crawled into to do it." June stood up silently and walked over to her nightstand, opening the drawer and pulling out a wrench.

"I'm going to dismantle her arm, slowly and painfully," she said in a low voice. "Then I'm going to bash her head in."

"But we don't know where they're taking her!" Huey pointed out. "We need to get intel before we go."

"They took my daughter, Huey." Louie's voice was cold, emotionless. But under it was a current of anger that was rare to hear.

"Yes, they did. And we'll get her back."

"I'll call Fenton!" Donald volunteered, pulling out his phone.

"It's not like Bradford to order something like this," Scrooge said, his own voice trembling with rage. "Black Heron is acting on her own accord. This is more her style."

"So it might not even be F.O.W.L," Mrs. Beakley agreed. Louie glared out the window for a moment.

June suddenly let out a frustrated scream and threw her wrench hard enough through the mirror on their wall that it not only shattered it but broke through the back and lodged the tool in the wall. She burst into tears, sinking slowly to the floor and burying her face in her hands out of grief. Her sobs were the only sound in the room as Louie forewent his own cold rage in favor of holding her close. These weren't tiny ladylike tears, either—these were big hiccupping my-world-is-falling-apart-and-now-I-am-too tears. Nobody knew what to say or what to do.

What could you say or do in this situation…?

* * *

At headquarters, Heron disembarked from the helicopter, egg still in her arms.

"Now, little one, you're going to be quite the asset," she told the egg. It was wrapped in the gold-colored blanket from its cradle. "I wonder, are you a boy or a girl? Doesn't matter. You're a part of us now."

"Heron, where have you been?" Bradford asked as she came into the room. His eyes landed on the egg in her arms. "What is that?"

"The newest member of the Duck family. Not even hatched yet. I took it right in front of its mother."

"Are you… you can't be serious! Do you realize you're bringing down that entire family on our operation?!"

"Relax, Bradford. They have no idea where we are or where I've taken this thing."

"That thing is a child. You literally stole their child."

"Who stole a child?" Iris asked, coming into the room. Her eyes landed on the egg. "Heron, whose child is that?"

"Your child's."

"I'm sorry, what?!"

"This is your grandchild. Congratulations. I just took it from its parents."

Heron shoved the egg into Iris's arms and she cradled it gently.

"Are you insane?!"

"Yes, but what is your point?"

"Which daughter?"

"Hm?"

"Which daughter did you take it from?"

"The… the purple one. The one that married into the McDuck family."

"June. Oh no." Iris's eyes were wide with terror. "Heron, she's going to rip us all apart."

"Nonsense."

"You don't understand. Our family has… an anger problem. Every generation one person gets this destructive anger that is nearly impossible to stop. It triggers increased strength, speed, mobility—everything. I have it and June has it. She will tear this place apart brick by brick, panel by panel, until she saves her child."

"Iris, you're talking nonsense. That's impossible."

"Okay, so what's your plan—raise them as part of F.O.W.L?"

"Precisely."

"What?"

"We'll raise it to be perfectly obedient and loyal only to us. Great idea!"

"WHAT WAS YOUR PLAN BEFORE?!"

Heron didn't answer and dialed Steelbeak on the communicator.

"I have a job for you," she stated.

Iris glanced down at the egg and Bradford facepalmed. Before too much longer, Steelbeak came into the room and was promptly handed the egg.

"You and Iris will be taking care of it until it hatches," Heron told him. "I expect that it will soon. It wouldn't stop moving on the ride over."

"Aw, this thing?" Steelbeak looked disgusted. "A kid?"

"Yes, a kid. Can't handle it?"

"I can handle anything, Heron!" He held it and Iris quickly corrected the way he was doing so. "Hey, Iris, you raised three of these things. Is it hard?"

"I only raised them for ten years. But yes, it's hard at the beginning. All the crying and neediness… I'm glad it was only the first time."

They headed through the lab, passing by Gandra Dee. The scientist spotted them and quietly followed, staying just out of sight as Steelbeak deposited the egg in a makeshift cradle that Iris made. Then they were both called away to deal with some kind of issue the Eggheads were having. Gandra approached the cradle and her throat tightened.

_Kidnapping an egg… this is too far._

She picked up the egg gently, making sure that it was still wrapped in its blanket before heading back to her quarters. There she set the egg down in a clothes-filled drawer and called Fenton on her S.H.U.S.H communicator.

 _"Gandra!"_ he gasped, appearing on the screen. _"I'm so glad you called. We have a problem! Louie and June's egg was—"_

He cut himself off as she aimed the camera at the egg resting in her drawer.

_"Oh, good. You have her."_

"Yes. And our location. I'm sending you the coordinates now." She typed them in and hit send. "Hurry. From what I overheard Heron is going to turn her into a child soldier for F.O.W.L."

_"I'll tell the family. Louie and June are worried sick. I've never seen either of them this… angry."_

"How angry?"

_"Donald said June threw a wrench through a mirror so hard it shattered the mirror and lodged itself in the wall behind it."_

"Yeah, I'm so glad I'm not Black Heron."

_"We'll be there as soon as possible. Thank you."_

He switched off and Gandra looked at the egg.

"Your mom's coming and she'll make them pay."

* * *

At the house, it had been one night since the egg had been taken. Della had managed (somewhat fitfully) to get to sleep, but from the way her aunt and uncle looked, neither of them had slept at all. She didn't blame them. June was angry and Louie was angry and seeing either of them angry was rare enough on its own. But both of them? That was something nobody had seen yet. Huey was trying in vain to talk his sister-in-law down from murder to no avail.

"I'm just saying, we want them brought to justice, not dead!"

"There is no excuse for stealing my child, Huey! She hasn't even hatched yet! We don't have a name—" Her eyes widened. "What if she hatches while she's there?!"

"We have a few days—"

"You hatched early! What if she takes after her father in that department?!" Anger was now mixed with panic.

"Hey, Donald and I hatched right on time!" Della spoke up. "I'm sure she'll be okay!"

June gripped the wrench that was in her hands tighter. Della grit her teeth.

"I just got a message from Fenton," Scrooge announced, coming into the room. "We have a location for where F.O.W.L is and even better, the egg is safe."

"Who's taking care of her?" June demanded to know.

"Gandra is seeing that no harm comes to your daughter."

June let out a relieved sigh, but it was quickly once again replaced by anger.

"How long will it take us to get there?"

"Several hours. We'll need to prepare and choose who's going."

"Can I go?" Della begged.

"Absolutely not," Dewey replied, entering the room. "You and Donald are staying here with your aunts and Huey."

"But _Dad_ —"

"This is insanely dangerous. Your cousin is in trouble and we don't need more kids to worry about."

"Fine…" Della stomped out of the room.

"I'm going," Louie stated, standing up from his chair.

"Me, too," June added.

"Are we deciding a team to go?" Gosalyn inquired, sticking her head in. "I'd like to join, if you all don't mind."

"Gos…" Huey sighed.

"No. I'm going."

"I was gonna say be careful."

"All right, that should just about settle it," Scrooge declared. "We don't want too many people going on this mission or it'll tip off F.O.W.L. So that's June, Louie, Dewey, Gosalyn, and myself. Everyone, pack your bags. It'll be a long trip."

"June, you and Louie need to rest before you go."

"I'll sleep when our baby girl is home," Louie scoffed. "Would you sleep if it was Donald or Della who'd been taken?"

Huey raised his finger to object, then lowered it because he knew Louie was right.

"Okay, fine, but as soon as she's home you're both getting a good night's sleep so you'll be ready when she hatches."

"I'm a light sleeper and I don't think either of us will be able to sleep easily for a while," June pointed out. "If her egg cracks in the slightest we'll hear it."

Huey let out a defeated sigh.

The ride to the island was long and arduous, made more so by June's constant shifting around. At one point, she randomly walked over to a crate of supplies and pulled it open to reveal Della had stowed away.

"How." That was all Della could say.

"I just knew." She was gritting her teeth in anger.

"Okay, that's scary," Dewey whispered to Louie from where the one-eyed man was piloting the sub.

"Wait until you see what she and I are gonna do to those…" Louie's voice trailed off into angry muttering, hiding the barrage of curses that he unloaded in reference to F.O.W.L. Gosalyn nodded and Scrooge grit his teeth in response.

"They will pay for this, June. Della, you're staying right here when we go in."

"What?!"

"You weren't supposed to come in the first place," Dewey told his daughter with a sigh. "How did you sneak aboard?"

"You guys were a little preoccupied so I snuck into the crate. It wasn't hard."

She sat down in one of the seats, taking note of the tension in the air. They hadn't wanted her to come because they didn't want to worry about more kids? Well, she wasn't a kid. This was her baby cousin. She wanted to help and it hurt her to see her aunt and uncle in as much pain as they were in.

Finally after another few hours, they reached the coordinates Gandra had sent Fenton. Stepping off the sub they were immediately surrounded by Eggheads. June already had her trusty wrench in hand as she smacked one hard and sent him flying into a few others.

"Spread out and find the egg!" Scrooge instructed.

Della stuck close to her dad as everyone else split up.

* * *

Louie panted as he searched every room he passed.

_C'mon, kiddo… where are you?_

That was when he heard crashing coming from down the hall. He rushed to investigate, only to find Steelbeak rummaging through a chest of drawers. Louie narrowed his eyes and threw a punch, landing it cleanly to the side of the rooster's head and sending him to the ground. Steelbeak stared up at him in shock and a look of slight fear came over his face as he chuckled nervously.

"Hey, buddy! Green kid! What, uh, what a surprise!"

"Where is she?"

"Who?" Louie grabbed the front of his tux and got within inches of his face.

"The egg, you moron. Where's my kid?"

"Oh, your kid." He laughed nervously again. "Uh… I sorta kinda lost it…?"

"You lost my daughter." Louie let him go and started laughing. It was actually a sort of terrifying sound that made Steelbeak uncomfortable. "No, no you didn't. She's here. Where is she?"

"I'm tellin' ya, buddy, I don't know. But I'll help you find it!"

" _Her_. That's my daughter."

"It's an egg—"

"Do you really want to argue with me? Because if you do, I'll leave you here."

"Great. I get out of this."

"Oh no." Louie grinned. "Once I leave this area, I'm telling my wife where you are. And that you lost our daughter. If you think I'm bad…"

"I ain't afraid of your wife! She's a pretty lady who takes care of that niece and nephew of yours—real smiley and nice."

"You've never seen her angry. Hell, _I've_ never seen her this angry before."

Screams of pain and terror sounded down the hall, along with the sounds of fighting and the _thud_ of someone hitting the ground. Steelbeak's eyes widened in terror.

"You hear that, _buddy_? Mama's coming."

"I'll help you. I promise I will! No tricks! Just don't let her touch me!"

"I make no promises."

"What are you doing?"

Gandra whirled around to find Iris standing behind her.

"Black Heron trusted Steelbeak with the egg," the top agent said. "Why do you have it?"

"Because he left it where it could be easily found. Here it's safer."

"Really."

"Isn't this _your_ grandchild?"

"My children don't consider me their mother, at least not for a long time." She shook her head. "Give me the egg. I'm leaving and I'm taking it with me."

"No."

"No?"

"Taking an egg away from its parents is wrong. This was done specifically to hurt your family."

"I have no family."

"You made that clear when you tried to throw your youngest off a building." Iris narrowed her eyes.

"Gandra. Give. Me. The. Egg."

"Never."

Iris lunged for the scientist and Gandra side-stepped her, running out of the room with the egg in her arms. She began to weave through the halls, hearing Iris scream her name. In the distance she could hear screaming and wails of pain coming from the Eggheads and she knew mama had come for the baby.

"OOF!"

She bumped into someone, instinctively cradling the egg.

"Gandra!" Steelbeak gasped. "You found the egg!"

"I had the egg this whole time," she sighed. "You left it out!"

The egg was suddenly taken from her arms. She was about to punch whoever had taken it until she realized it was Louie, who looked ready to sob with relief. He was holding the egg close to his chest.

"There, buddy. You got your egg. Now call off your wife before she kills us."

"Oh, you're not the target of her rage. You're all just getting in her way." Steelbeak blinked.

Before anything else could be said, Iris came rushing around the corner. Her eyes landed on Louie, who glared in anger at the F.O.W.L agent. She matched it and he got to his feet, shielding the precious egg from her view. Steelbeak took it as an opportunity to get out of there.

"Well, if it isn't my son-in-law. I have to thank you for getting my grandchild away from _her_." She nodded to Gandra, who looked ready for a fight.

"Iris, walk away," he told her. "You don't want this fight."

"Oh, but I do. I failed with my three girls. I can raise my grandchild correctly."

"Like _hell_ you will," Louie spat. "Your head's so far up your own ass that you can't see that we don't want you to have any part of our daughter's life."

Iris lunged and a wrench flew through the air, narrowly missing her head and sticking into the wall. She froze, locking eyes with her daughter, who was in full rage mode. Louie backed away with the egg in his arms and she looked, her anger briefly abating as she saw that her baby was safe. Then she turned back to Iris, who backed away.

"Get out." June's voice was low. "Get out of our lives and never come back. Next time the wrench is going into your head."

The woman hesitated for a moment, then took off. Gandra nodded to Louie and June before running off as well. The exhaustion of the previous two days caught up with June once they were gone and she dropped to her knees. Louie knelt beside her, carefully passing their child to her. She had a little bit of grease on her, he noted as he pulled her wrench out of the wall.

"You find Heron?"

"She's down an arm yet again." Louie quickly sent a message to the rest of the team that the egg was safe, that it was time to go home. He and June stood up to head out, only for Iris to run towards them at top speed. June side-stepped her mother just in time and Iris whirled around, glaring angrily.

"Give me my grandchild!"

"NO!" June clutched the egg to her chest and Louie threw the wrench, catching Iris in just the right way to knock her out.

It was over for now.

* * *

"IT'S HAPPENING!"

Donald fell out of bed at Della's screaming. She threw open his bedroom door and started pulling him towards their aunt and uncle's room.

"The egg's hatching! The baby's coming!"

"I'm coming," he mumbled sleepily before her words sunk in. Then his eyes popped open and suddenly he was wide awake and on his feet. He found most of the other residents of the house had already made it to where Louie and June were watching as the egg continued to crack itself open.

Then a little beak burst through, followed by the rest of the duckling.

She didn't look anything like Donald thought she would. She was small, yes, but her feathers were damp and sticky with liquid from inside the egg. It was a little gross but it was the miracle of birth, as Huey would put it. The baby started crying and June picked her up, shushing her quietly as she cradled her. It subsided quickly and Huey helped them clean up their newborn after handing his camera off to Mrs. Beakley (he was documenting everything, like he had for the twins). When it was done the baby was swaddled in the blanket from Goldie.

"She's so cute!" Della cooed. "Hiya. I'm your cousin! But I can be your big sister instead if you want!"

"What's her name?" Dewey asked. "I've been asking since you found out she was a girl and you won't tell me."

"Dewey!" Huey hissed.

"Well, June found one that I really liked," Louie replied. "So we're using that for a first name and my choice for a middle name."

"Everyone, meet Aurelia Chance McDuck," June added, the baby nestling close to her.

"That's so pretty!" gasped Webby.

"It's perfect for the wee one," Scrooge agreed. "If I'm not mistaken, Aurelia means…"

"Gold," Louie chuckled. "And Chance is because of… well, the fact that there was a one-percent chance she wasn't with us yet. Luck."

"I bet it'll help her," Donald said, smiling at the baby and holding out his hand to touch hers. Her tiny fingers wrapped around his and he gasped.

"She likes him!" Della giggled.

"I'm glad she does," June agreed.

"Welcome to the family, Aurelia," Huey told his newborn niece, snapping a photo of the kids all clustered together.

Aurelia let out a happy coo, surrounded by family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO HAPPY TO SHOW OFF MY OC
> 
> More adorable baby hijinks will be happening, mark my words. I already have a babysitting chapter in the works.
> 
> So long and thanks for all the fish!


	7. Not a Monster

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me and Delly have some strange talks.

Mornings at McDuck Manor were pretty low-key, all things considered.

It was a sunny Saturday, the kind of day meant to spend outside or going somewhere. And in fact, that was where Della found June. Not dressed to go down to the garage but to just go out for the day.

"Hey, where are you going?" Della asked.

"I'm heading down to the mall. A friend of mine from high school is meeting me there so we can catch up. We haven't seen each other in a while."

"Can we come?" Donald looked hopeful, too.

"I need new guitar strings!" he piped up.

"Of course you guys can come. It'll be nice for you to meet her if you want."

"Thanks!"

The ride to the mall wasn't as long as you'd think, thankfully, and June was easily able to find parking. Della was curious as to the kind of person her favorite aunt had been friends with way back then, but she decided to let June have some time with her old friend and dragged Donald off to look around in a few of the stores.

June, on the other hand, immediately spotted the woman with her hair in a bob. She made her way over and the woman stood up to greet her happily.

"Junie!"

"Emily!" They hugged and sat down at the table.

"Man, it's been ages! What have you been up to?"

"Well, I've been busy with a new job."

"You gave up being a mechanic?"

"Nah. I'm still a mechanic. I'm just working for someone other than myself."

"That's pretty cool. I'm still working as a pilot."

"I figured." June let out a chuckle.

"How about… _relationships_? You seeing anyone?"

"Actually, I got married."

"You got _married_?! Let me see the ring!"

June held out her hand. The placeholder ring that Scrooge had given her and Louie had been replaced by one that Louie had insisted on buying her. It wasn't anything fancy or extravagant. It was a simple small stone set on a gold band. She didn't need anything fancy. It would've gotten in the way while she was working.

"It's pretty nice. Simple, but nice. Suits you." Emily grinned, then got a serious face. "So, I do have to ask. Have you heard from your mom?"

"…yes."

"That's not the 'reconciled with Mom' face."

"No, I didn't. I-I really would rather not talk about her. Let's talk about you! You asked about my relationships; what about you?"

"You know me—I can't settle down for too long. Last significant other was a girl in Tokyolk. Before that, it was a guy in New Stork." Emily sighed, stirring the coffee she'd been drinking when June had arrived. "Honestly, I thought you'd be the same way."

"Hm?"

"You know, a free spirit who can't be tied down. No long-term stuff—just short-term everything."

"I couldn't do that, honestly. Family is too important to me, especially since I got married."

"Out of curiosity, how long were you dating this person? Because when we met up four years ago you weren't in a relationship at all. You were focusing on getting your garage off the ground."

"Well, he's that friend of mine I told you about from when I was a kid—Louie."

"Oh, the one who wanted to be rich, right? The cute one that happened to be your first crush?"

"Yeah. We reconnected three years ago and within a year we got married."

"Damn. You two work fast."

"It was a… strange situation." June stood up. "I'm going to go get some tea."

"I'll be here."

Emily stared at her phone while June was gone, only to realize that a couple of kids were walking up to the table. They were a boy and girl, around maybe twelve or thirteen, and she didn't know who they were but they bore a striking resemblance to someone she'd known years ago. The boy looked between her and the girl, seemingly confused by something that eluded her.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"We're looking for our aunt," the girl replied.

"Your aunt?"

"June."

"Ah. She'll be back soon. She just went to get some tea." She smiled and held out her hand. "I'm Emily Carter."

"Hey, Emily. I'm Della."

"And I'm Donald!" There was a quality to the boy's voice that made it a little… quacky, for lack of a better word.

"Hey, kids," June greeted them, coming up with her cup of tea. "I see you've met Emily."

"You're an aunt again?"

"She's the coolest!" Della declared proudly. "First time we ever met she kept me from falling out of a car and saved me from a rampaging robot."

"Is that true?" Emily's eyes were wide. "Junie, that's amazing!"

"It really wasn't that cool." June shrugged.

"Are you kidding?!" Della frowned. "You saved my life. And you were able to meet Uncle Louie again."

"Aunt June said you were friends in high school," Donald spoke up.

"Oh yeah we were. I have a few pictures from back then for us to look at." She scrolled through her phone until she came to one. "This is a good one—it's from when she was on roller derby."

A teenaged June was in the picture, back to the camera to reveal the rear of a dark blue jacket that said 'Gear Jammer'. Her hair had blue and gold streaks in it, presumably team colors. There were a few scrapes and bumps and bruises on her body in places they could see but June was looking over her shoulder and grinning brightly.

"Gear Jammer?" Della questioned.

"Nickname. I was into fixing machines and 'jammer' was my position. I'll tell you more about those days some other time. Anyway, here's something about Em you'll love, Della. She's a pilot."

Della's eyes nearly popped out of her head.

"Really?! You're a pilot?!"

"Sure am."

"My dad's a pilot!"

"Really? Small world!"

In the back of Emily's mind, memories of the starry-eyed goofball of a classmate she'd dated back in flight school came bubbling to the surface. Her throat dried at the thought of maybe, just maybe, Della and Donald were the eggs she'd left behind with that classmate. Dewey Duck.

But that didn't matter for now.

What mattered was spending time with June.

* * *

"So, how was your day?" Huey asked.

"It was awesome!" Donald replied. "We went to the mall with Aunt June and met someone she knew in high school!"

"Old friend," June clarified. "Actually, my best friend back then. She and I don't talk much anymore but we get together when we can."

"Well, it's always good to see old friends," Dewey chuckled.

"She's a pilot!" Della chirped. "She had all these pictures of places she's been and things she's seen! And high-school pictures of Aunt June!"

"What kind of pictures?" Louie snickered next to his wife. She gave him a mocking kick to cut it out.

"Pictures from my time in roller derby. Nothing you can't get from my dad."

"She was really nice," Donald added. "She talked to us a lot and she told really great jokes."

"Emily's awesome!" Della agreed.

Dewey stiffened a little, but nobody noticed. Louie and Huey became uncomfortable as well. June did notice her husband's expression and made a note to ask about it later.

"She says next time she's in Duckburg she'll see us again."

"So, uh, what did Emily look like?" Huey inquired.

"Her hair was cut in a bob and she was really pretty!"

"She kinda looked like Della," Donald mused.

"Come on, as if I'd ever wear my hair like that," Della snorted.

"June…" Louie spoke up, his voice sounding a little strained. "What's Emily's last name?"

"Carter. Emily Carter."

Dewey dropped his fork, catching everyone's attention.

"What?" A sick feeling welled in June's gut. "What's wrong with Emily?"

Donald's eyes widened as he suddenly understood. Della tilted her head in confusion.

"Dad, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Dells. It's just… I need some water."

"No, you're not _fine_!" Donald snapped. "Emily's our mom, isn't she?"

A heavy silence fell over the room in an instant, and Dewey refused to look his kids in the eye as he answered.

"…yes."

June covered her mouth, looking ready to throw up. Della stared at her father, then shook her head.

"No. Emily can't be our mom. No. She's cool! She's really nice! Our mom is a monster who abandoned us!"

"Emily's not a monster," June and Dewey said in unison. They stared at each other and Huey shook his head angrily.

"June, how could you be friends with—"

"No. Huey, don't you _dare_ ," Louie growled. "Do _not_ blame her for this. She had no way of knowing. We haven't said Emily's name in this house in thirteen years."

"She walked out on…" June was shaking. "No. Not after—no."

"Well, dinner's ruined," muttered Donald.

"I'm going upstairs," Dewey mumbled, standing up.

"Dewey—" started Huey.

"No. I'm fine. I swear, I'm over it."

He went up to his room and laid on his bed. Memories of the day Donald and Della's eggs had been laid flooded back, how the next morning he'd awoken to nothing but a note sitting near the eggs saying that she was leaving. And he'd never heard from her again. Now suddenly she was back in Duckburg and meeting with his sister-in-law. And the kids had met her.

* * *

He wasn't sure how much time he spent lying there in bed, staring at the ceiling. The next thing he knew, light shone through the window and it was morning. He didn't feel like getting out of bed. His whole body felt heavy and he couldn't bring himself to go downstairs, where Della and Donald would be asking all the questions he'd been dreading them asking since their mother had left them. What made it worse was that he wasn't sure how to answer them in the first place.

_Ugh. Why is this so hard?!_

A knock sounded at his door.

"Dad? Are you awake?" Della asked in a muffled voice.

"Yeah, kiddo. I'm awake."

Della came in and looked at him, an expression of worry crossing her face.

"Dad. Did you even sleep last night?"

"No. I didn't."

"Because of Emily?"

"Maybe. I dunno. It all ended so quickly and… I know you and Donald have questions."

"Yeah. For her. But Uncle Huey said we can't talk to her again. He and Aunt June are arguing over it downstairs, which is why I came up here."

"Wait, what?"

"Aunt June said it should be okay but he says that he doesn't want us anywhere near her and it's a big mess. Uncle Louie is choosing not to take sides."

"I don't blame him. Everything that happened with your mom is a mess." She hopped up on the bed. "I thought we were good. Like we were happy. But she left."

"I think you need to talk to her." He raised an eyebrow. "Maybe ask her the questions you had thirteen years ago when she walked out."

"And what questions would that be?"

"Why?" Donald answered from the doorway. He crossed the room and sat on his father's other side. "Why did she leave? Did she even care?"

"Yeah. I think you kids are right." He pulled them close into a hug. "I love you two; you know that, right?"

"Of course," they replied in unison. Then they pointed at each other. "JINX! YOU OWE ME A SODA!"

Dewey chuckled a little.

"I'd better go make sure your aunt and uncle don't tear each other in half. June's the only one who talks to Emily so she might know how to find her."

He and the twins headed downstairs. He could hear Huey's raised voice already.

"YOU'RE NOT _LISTENING_!"

"NEITHER ARE YOU!"

"You didn't even know about what happened!"

"I knew enough!"

"Obviously not because you think Emily should be a part of their lives!"

"NO! I THINK THEY SHOULD TALK TO THEIR MOTHER!"

"Guys!" Dewey interrupted, entering the room. June paused, and then Dewey noticed angry tears on her face. "June, you okay?"

"Yeah." She wiped the tears away and Huey let out a huff.

"Dewey, _she_ thinks we should let the kids see Emily again. As if it wasn't the worst idea to ever exist!"

"It's not the _worst_ idea!" She pointed at him. " _You're_ stuck in what happened and you don't think they want answers?!"

"They've been doing very well without answers from _her_ until now!"

"Because they had no way to _get_ those answers! This is their chance!"

"THEIR CHANCE OF GETTING HURT, YOU MEAN!"

"OR MAYBE THEIR CHANCE TO GET CLOSURE THAT I NEVER GOT WITH MINE!"

You could've heard a pin drop as Huey's eyes widened in horror. He covered his mouth as Louie came rushing into to the room. June shook her head, tears in her eyes yet again as her husband took her hand in his and pulled her into a hug.

"June… I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I forgot…"

"How personal it is to me?" she whispered hoarsely.

"I just… I keep thinking of how hurt Dewey was and I forget that you went through the same thing he did. The same thing the kids did." He turned towards Della and Donald, who were staring at the scene with wide, uncertain eyes.

"I guess… I guess it's not up to me. Do you really want to meet her again?"

"Dad deserves it first," Della replied. "If he's okay afterwards then I want it."

"I'm not sure," Donald mumbled.

"…Liar."

"Okay, so I _do_. But everything's so messy already—how can meeting her again fix anything?"

"It's called closure," sighed June, sitting down on the couch. "You talk to someone—the person if you can—and work through your feelings until you feel better. It works wonders, even if it doesn't feel like it will at first." Dewey took a deep breath.

"Huey. I think I need to see her."

"I think it'll be good for you, if what June's saying is right."

"All right, then. June, I want to see Emily. Can you help me out?"

"Of course." She smiled. "But you're not going alone."

"Oh, yeah, totally not. You're coming with me just in case."

"Why June?" Huey asked.

"Can I have a guarantee that you're not going to attack Emily on sight for what she did?" Huey considered this for a moment, then shook his head. "Then that would be why. Louie, I'm borrowing your wife for the evening."

Louie face-palmed.

"Why. Why did you have to say it like that?"

"You know I had to." Dewey and June headed out of the room after she gave Louie a quick kiss goodbye on the cheek.

"By the way, why'd you come in earlier?" Huey asked Louie. "I thought you were staying out of it."

"I was until I heard June scream about Iris. That never ends well and I thought I was needed."

* * *

Dewey took a deep shuddering breath as he parked the car.

"June, you're sure this will help?"

"I'm sure. When you're done, I'll tell you how I knew."

He nodded and looked to see Emily was already waiting at the bench they'd agreed on.

"Wish me luck."

"Luck."

Dewey walked over to Emily, who stood up upon seeing him.

"Hey," she greeted him.

"Hey." He swallowed. "Mind if we sit?"

"Not at all." They both sat down and the tension and silence was palpable, to say the least.

Dewey was the first to break the silence.

"You look… good."

"So do you." She moved to touch his eyepatch, then jerked her hand back. "Sorry. I…"

"No, no, it's fine."

"How did it happen?"

"Long story short, you're not the only one who missed out on our kids growing up. I made a stupid choice that ended in me being trapped on the moon. My helmet shattered on impact and a piece landed in my eye."

"Ouch. I… great googly moogly, this is awkward."

"Heh." He took a deep breath. "I guess I have to start. Why? Why did you leave us?"

"To be honest… I never really wanted a family or a long-term partner. Around the time I got pregnant I was planning to break up with you but… the eggs changed my plans. I stayed long enough so you could at least have the kids."

"I loved you." His voice was breaking. "I really loved you."

"And I loved you, too. Just not enough to stay. I became a pilot because I wanted to spread my wings and be free to go where the wind took me. I didn't want to be tied down and I certainly never wanted to have kids."

"You could've stayed in contact."

"I thought it was better if I made a clean break but I left the note so you'd at least know some of the reasons I was leaving." She leaned back with a sigh. "It's not that I didn't care. I just… ugh, why is this so hard?"

"You're asking me. I've spent thirteen years dreading Della and Donald asking me questions about you but my brother shut that down when they were kids. Until yesterday Della thought you were a monster."

"I guess I kind of am. I left my kids behind, but…" She shook her head. "I don't regret it. I saw them yesterday. They seem like they're pretty amazing kids without me."

"Yeah. They are."

"…if you want me to stay, it's not gonna happen."

"I figured. They do want to meet you again properly, though."

"I think I could do that." She smiled and he couldn't help but smile back.

"…so, what have you been up to?"

"Working, mostly. I get hired by rich people for private charters all the time. I'm here right now because I just got done with one for the CEO of Waddle."

"Mark Beaks?!"

"I know. He hit on me several times and I told his secretary to never hire me again."

"I'm not fond of him, either. I wasn't around for it but he almost got Della and June killed with a self-driving car. Apparently that's how June came back into our lives, though."

"They told me about it. Now I'm really glad I'm never working for him again." She sighed. "Are you… okay? With this?"

"With you not being around? Yeah. I think so. I loved you back then but I don't see us ever really having anything again."

"Me either." She held out her hand. "Awkward acquaintances?"

"Awkward acquaintances." He shook her hand.

It felt like a weight had been lifted. Like he finally had some answers to questions he'd had for thirteen years. He wasn't getting back together with her but that didn't matter. He had the kids, she had the life she wanted, they were okay.

"I think I should get home."

"Yeah, okay." They stood up and he nodded.

"I'll text you when Della and Donald want to meet you."

"That sounds good. I'll keep an eye out."

He hesitated, then pulled her into a hug that she reciprocated.

"One last time," he told her.

"One last time," she echoed.

They walked over to where June was sitting in driver's seat of the car and Emily had parked her rental. He watched as she drove off and got into the passenger seat, feeling himself deflate with relief.

"Good?" June asked.

"Yeah, I'm good." He leaned the seat back and stared through the open moonroof. "You said you'd tell me how you knew this would help."

She leaned her seat back and nodded.

"How did you know?"

"Because I went through it, too. Only difference is I didn't talk to the person who hurt me. I did talk to someone, though."

"Who?"

"…Louie. That night you caught me when Iris tried to kill me. I broke down and told him everything when we were home and he'd patched me up. He held me and listened to what I told him. Once I got it all out I felt so much better… then I fell asleep. He was still there in the morning and he made sure I was okay."

"Heh. My brother's pretty good to you."

"I wouldn't have married him if he wasn't."

"…it's been thirteen years. Honestly, I really thought I was over it by now."

"It's been twenty-five years since my mom walked out. Even though I know what a horrible person she is, I'm still not completely over it because it's not something you can just get over."

"Because life can't ever be easy like that, right?" he chuckled humorlessly.

"No. But it gets easier. Every day I wake up next to someone who checks if I'm okay if I didn't sleep well and I have a family who loves me and wants me around. It's about having support, and we've got a pretty good one, honestly."

"June. Your mother is a moron."

"Yeah, she is. I thought it was my fault for the longest time, until I found out she was part of F.O.W.L. It took twenty-two years for me to stop blaming myself and realize that she left not because of us, but because she was someone who wanted the world at her beck and call."

"I think we need to go to therapy."

"I think our whole family needs to go to therapy."

They started laughing, then sat there for a few moments in silent before June put her seat upright and started the engine.

"Let's get home. I'm sure you need some sleep."

"Sleep sounds good. Really good."

She pulled out of the parking lot and headed towards home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, debut of Emily, which is the official name of Della and Donald's mom in this AU. Special thanks to my pal Delly who runs the ducks-gen-swap Tumblr and works with me to write out a lot of these chapters. We came up with everything from Emily's name to the plot in our conversations. This one was heavy but we got through it.
> 
> PLEASE DO NOT ASK ABOUT EMILY ON TUMBLR. DELLY ISN'T COMFORTABLE ANSWERING ASKS ABOUT HER.
> 
> Next time is light-hearted babysitting hijinks with Aurelia and her cousins.
> 
> So long and thanks for all the fish!


	8. Babysitting

Scrooge was used to the new baby by now.

Aurelia was an adorable little addition to the family, always laughing and smiling and reaching out for cuddles and hugs. It had been difficult at first, mostly because the baby couldn't sleep through the night, but now Aurelia was sleeping all night and full of energy during the day. Louie had slipped easily into being her father and June's already-present (and frankly dangerous) maternal instincts had only gotten stronger. Yet with Louie's paternity leave ending soon, Scrooge couldn't help but feel like his nephew and niece-in-law needed some time off from the baby.

"I know this party's a big deal, but I don't think June's ready to let someone other than us take care of Chance," Louie sighed.

"The two of ya haven't had a proper date night since before June found out she was pregnant."

"Our last date night resulted in her being pregnant."

"It's just an event, lad. A chance for you two to dress up and spend some time together away from everyone else. Have you ever taken June to one of these before?"

"No. It's not really her speed, but things have been so hectic with the baby that I wouldn't mind slowing down a bit for an evening."

"Ask her."

Louie pulled out his phone and hit call on June's name.

 _"Hello?"_ she said with a bit of a yawn, appearing on the screen.

"Hey, bug, it's me." He smiled and she smiled back.

_"Hi, what's up?"_

"So there's an event going on tomorrow night that Uncle Scrooge has to attend and he was wondering if we'd go with him. We can make it our first date night since Aurelia was born."

 _"What kind of event?"_ She set down the phone for a second and he could see her adjusting to bring Aurelia more into frame. Their daughter reached for the phone and June laughed.

"It's, uh, a dinner. I know it's not your style but I'd like to spend some time with you one-on-one. We haven't since the baby."

 _"It might be nice to get out of the house for a bit…"_ Aurelia pouted in her mother's arms and reached for her father, appearing to be frustrated by the screen getting in the way. _"Aw, looks like someone misses you."_

"I miss you, too." He smiled and stuck out his tongue at his daughter, who did the same. June giggled. "So, thoughts?"

_"When is this thing again?_

"Tomorrow night."

_"Jeez. Huey and Gos aren't gonna be home. Someone needs to watch this little one."_

"I have another brother. And we have a niece and nephew who love her very much." June looked a little uncertain but nodded anyway.

_"Okay. They can babysit. Just… I'm nervous. She's never been away from both of us at the same time before, other than the incident before she hatched."_

"Nothing bad's going to happen, bug. I promise."

_"All right then. I'll see you at home. It's your turn for the bedtime routine."_

"Oh, I forgot. Yes! It's my turn!"

_"Goofball. I love you!"_

"Love you, too. And you, Chance!"

Aurelia babbled and Louie hung up. He looked to see Scrooge wiping a tear away from his eye.

"What?"

"Nothing, it's just… you've settled so well into being a father. I cannae believe it sometimes, watching you with Aurelia."

"Heh, thanks. Is it normal to feel this attached?"

"You're asking the man who nearly bankrupted himself tryin' ta get your brother home from space. It's normal."

Louie smiled at the picture of Aurelia and June that was his lock screen.

* * *

"You want me to what?"

"Babysit," Louie repeated, his daughter in his arms.

"Really? You want me to watch Lia?" Donald's eyes shone with a hint of excitement.

"Yeah. Huey and Gos aren't gonna be here and we're going out for the night. I know you might be busy—"

"I'm not! I promise I'll take care of her!"

"How come he gets to babysit?" Della piped up.

"Honestly, you seem more interested in playing with her than the care part." Aurelia babbled and he nodded.

"Oh, okay. That's kinda fair."

"Huey's helping June work up what you'll need to do while we're gone. She's a pretty easy kid so it shouldn't be hard."

"YOU GOT STUPIDLY LUCKY!" Huey yelled from down the hall.

"Yeah, we did."

"If Uncle Huey's stories of our baby days are any indication, we were terrors," Della chuckled. "Not this one, though!"

"Not Aurelia, right."

"Aunt June must be nervous," Donald mused.

"Oh, extremely." He looked at Aurelia, who was squirming. "Time for your bedtime routine, Chance."

He headed upstairs and Della looked over at Donald, who was looking happy.

"They trust me to babysit!" he cheered.

"And they don't trust me," Della grumbled. "I love Lia! I could take care of her for a night!"

"I think taking care of a baby is harder than you think."

"We'll see about that! I'm helping you!"

"Good. I might need it."

* * *

The following evening, Huey and Gosalyn had already left. Webby was over at Lena's and Mrs. Beakley was on a vacation somewhere. Drake had gone out for the evening as well.

"You ready?" Dewey asked his son.

"Ready as I can be."

June came downstairs, already wearing her dress. It was floor-length and purple with sleeves that only covered her shoulders. Her hair was up in a nicer bun than it usually was these days. She was even wearing makeup and jewelry, albeit just a necklace, earrings, and her two rings. In her arms was a binder. Louie was right behind her wearing a tux and carrying the baby.

"Okay," June sighed. "This is a binder of everything you need to know to take care of Aurelia. Her routines and her food preferences are included. Please stick to it."

"You got it!" Donald assured her. "I'll take good care of her, Aunt June. I promise!"

Louie handed the baby to Della after giving her a hug and a kiss on the forehead, who instinctively held her the same way his uncle had been. The binder was handed to Donald, who opened it and began to scan the pages.

"You look great, by the way!" Dewey told his sister-in-law.

"Thanks. I hope I'm not overdressed."

"You're definitely perfect," Louie assured her, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"Okay, then…" She seemed very nervous.

"June, Louie! Let's go!" called Scrooge, coming down the stairs himself.

"Coming, Uncle Scrooge," Louie replied, taking his wife's hand. "Let's not keep him waiting, bug."

"Goodbye, my darling!" June said to Aurelia, who babbled happily.

"We'll be back in a few hours!" Louie added.

They were out the door. As soon as it closed behind them, Aurelia stared at it and her face crumpled. Immediately she started crying. Dewey and Della jumped in shock, the latter rocking her cousin frantically trying to soothe her.

"It's okay," she told her. "They'll be back. And they miss you, too."

It didn't seem to comfort the baby, who kept sobbing and trying to wiggle out of his grasp as she reached for the door. The sound was heartbreaking. Della wouldn't have been surprised if June heard it and tried to come back inside.

"How do we get her to stop?" Della asked her dad.

"I dunno! I wasn't here for this with you guys!"

Donald snapped the binder shut and set it on the coffee table.

"Let me try," he told Della. She handed him the squirming baby and he cradled her gently. "Shhh… it's okay, Lia. It's okay. We're here. You're safe."

At the sound of his voice, she calmed down a little, her sobs fading slightly as she stared up at him. He smiled.

"There you go." He bounced her and the crying stopped, she instead starting to giggle.

"Hey, it worked," Della marveled. "Wow, Don. You're really good with babies."

"Aunt June and Uncle Louie asked me to babysit for a reason!" He stuck out his tongue and Aurelia did it right back, making Della laugh.

"So, what do we do now?"

"Playtime. Then dinner and a bath and bed."

"I got playtime covered. Let's go upstairs!"

* * *

June wrung her hands nervously as they walked up to the doors of the museum.

"I feel really out of place," she mumbled to Louie, who took her hand in his.

"You're not. I swear. We're gonna be fine."

"Names?" asked the bouncer, holding a clipboard.

"Scrooge, Llewellyn, and June McDuck," Scrooge replied.

"You're on the list. Go right in."

Inside it was exactly the kind of stuffy rich-person party you'd expect. Every wealthy resident of Duckburg was there, including some who had… less than stellar relationships with Scrooge McDuck and his family. Scrooge nodded to his nephew and niece-in-law and wandered off to go talk to some of his constituents while they went to find a place to sit.

"Oh my gosh, is that Louie and Honey?" asked an obnoxious voice they knew all too well.

"Mark Beaks," Louie grumbled as the gray parrot came up to them.

"Louie, looking snazzy. And Honey, you're gorgeous but honestly you didn't need much. I haven't seen you guys in months! Where have you been?"

"Taking care of our baby," June replied, crossing her arms.

"A _baby_? Wow. Totally the mom type. Must be hard with such a workaholic husband. Bet you went back as soon as the kid hatched, huh?"

"Actually, I just went back in the past couple weeks. She's almost six months now," Louie chuckled.

"So what, you two just left her at home? Hashtag modern parenting!"

"Beaks, what do you want?"

"I just wanted to talk to my two best pals!"

June looked horrified at the thought of being his 'best pal'.

"You two have _got_ to try some of the food here. I'll bring you some."

He ran off and June stared at Louie in shock and discomfort.

"So much for 'date night'," she sighed.

"I didn't know he was gonna be here, bug. If I'd known I'd have told Scrooge hell no to the invitation."

"He seems kinda clingy tonight, actually. Something's going on."

"Let's just… try to enjoy ourselves, okay?"

They found their names written on a card at the table reserved for the Billionaires' Club. Glomgold was sitting there, already eating his food rather messily. Scrooge made his way over and sighed as he took his spot next to his family members. Then just to make the circle complete, Mark Beaks came over with a grin and a plate of food he gave to June and Louie. Both of them glanced at each other and Louie laughed nervously.

"So, the Billionaires' Club is together again," Mark stated, smirking. "The four richest people in the world and guest."

"She's my wife," Louie reminded him, crossing his arms in frustration.

"I don't see a ring." June held up her left hand to show off both her engagement ring and her wedding ring. "When did that happen?"

"Five years ago. Keep up, Beaks."

Glomgold finished eating and looked up.

"That's not a ring! That's a cheap bauble!"

"Oh, no, somebody please call someone to get him under control," June muttered.

"It's not even made of diamond! That's a ring!"

"They _had_ a diamond," Scrooge snapped. "I gave it to them but Louie wanted her to have a ring that was more her style."

"I'm sorry, I need to go get some water," June sighed, standing up.

"I'll go with you," Louie offered, following her quickly.

"So, uh, how was their wedding?" Mark asked Scrooge.

Over at the drinks table, June took a deep breath and Louie put a hand on her shoulder.

"This was a terrible idea," she told him. "We should've just gone to dinner and a movie."

"Yeah, we should've. Sorry, it's just…"

"No, don't apologize. That makes it seem like _you_ were in the wrong. Nobody was. We just… made a bad choice." She pulled her phone out of the pocket of her dress and frowned looking at the lock screen of Louie and Aurelia sticking out their tongues in unison. "I also miss our baby…"

"We'll have to get used to being apart from her sometimes. Otherwise we'll turn into Huey."

She laughed and gave him a hug before he nodded.

"So, I think I can get us last-minute dinner reservations. Anywhere you wanna go?"

"As long as I like the food I don't really care."

"I'll go let Uncle Scrooge know we're—"

"CURSE ME KILTS, WILL YA LISTEN?!" they heard Scrooge yell. Glomgold screamed something unintelligible back.

"And that's our signal to go. We'll come back and pick him up when we're done."

June nodded and they exited the museum.

* * *

"Okay. Note to self, Lia hates mashed carrots."

Della wiped off her face as Aurelia giggled in her high chair.

"She's having fun, at least," Dewey pointed out.

"Uh!" Aurelia kicked her feet.

"I got sweet potatoes," Donald offered.

"Ew, that's gross," Della groaned.

"They're on the list of food she likes."

"So were the carrots and she still got them all over the place." Della grabbed a cloth and began to clean up the mess while Dewey took the jar from Donald and took out a spoonful of sweet potatoes.

"Eat and then we can play," Dewey encouraged his niece.

Aurelia shook her head.

"No? You don't wanna eat? But you need to."

"She's a McDuck," Donald said pointedly. "Really really stubborn."

"Fine. Don't eat then."

"Dad."

"Donald, I really think we shouldn't be helping you. You've got it handled."

"With feeding and stuff, yeah, but not playtime. Della's good at that." He opened his mouth in a funny face that Aurelia copied and Dewey put the spoon in the baby's mouth. She suddenly had an expression of shock and offense, like he'd betrayed her somehow.

"I'll let you handle it then." Dewey sighed. "Guess it's good to know I would've been useless with you kids when you were babies."

"No, you wouldn't have been useless!" Della gasped. "You're our dad! Plus you would've had Uncle Huey and Uncle Louie and Uncle Scrooge to help you out."

Donald finished feeding Aurelia and wiped her face with her bib that said 'RICHEST DUCKLING IN THE WORLD' in gold letters.

"This stuff is important, but it's small," he added. "I'm not Lia's dad because I take care of her. That's Uncle Louie. He does a lot more, like comforting her at night and making sure she's happy and healthy. And love. Lots of it."

"Yeah, I could've had that part down. I kinda wish that I could at least go back and do it for one day." He looked thoughtful. "We got a genie lamp around here?"

"No!" both twins yelled.

"AH!" Aurelia yelled, too.

Suddenly, Della's phone went off with a notification. She opened it and laughed.

" 'Your aunt and uncle left me alone with Beaks and Glomgold. They are going to pay for this.' It's from Uncle Scrooge."

Dewey laughed a little, too. Donald picked Aurelia out of her high chair and she swung her legs, giggling.

"Okay, Lia, time for a bath."

"I can do that!" Della volunteered. "All I have to do is clean her off and play with her, right?"

"Pretty much, yeah."

"Good!"

She took the baby and ran upstairs. It was then that Donald realized she'd left the majority of the mess for him and Dewey to clean up. He let out a sigh and grabbed a cloth to begin taking care of the mashed carrots that were still all around the high chair.

By the time he was done, Aurelia was wrapped in her bunny-hood towel and squeaky clean. Della was picking out a set of pajamas while Dewey put a diaper on his niece. Donald smiled as he watched them try to put the pajamas on the baby. Aurelia may have been easy for her parents, but trying to get her into clothes was a fight even for them. Louie had his own tactics for making it happen that didn't always work.

"She's so wriggly!" Della complained.

"She doesn't like clothes a lot of the time," Donald chuckled.

"I can't understand why. It must be cold."

Aurelia stuck out her tongue and Della did it right back.

From there, they somehow managed to get Aurelia's pajamas on and Donald went to check the bedtime routine. It was a lot of snuggling and things like that. He followed it to the letter, but Aurelia refused to go to sleep. She was still wide awake.

"Ugh, what did Huey do when you two got like this?" Dewey asked.

"He used to read to us from the JWG," Della sighed. "When we got a little older he used to fall asleep in front of the TV and we'd go down and fall asleep next to him."

"Let's try that. Maybe it's the sound."

They went downstairs and Donald laid Aurelia down on his lap. She gurgled happily and he sighed as Della turned on _Ottoman Empire_. Eventually, the baby's eyes closed and her breathing became more gentle. Della laid back on the couch and fell asleep herself.

* * *

"Well, tonight was a bust."

"I wouldn't say that, Uncle Scrooge," Louie chuckled as they walked up to the house.

"You two left me with those two daft dimwits!"

"I was not staying to be harassed by Beaks all night," June grumbled. "At least Louie and I still spent some time together. I'm ready to see our baby."

"Me too," Louie agreed.

"Well, I guess I can't fault ya for that."

They opened the door and June ran upstairs to the nursery. Aurelia's crib was empty. She started to panic until Scrooge appeared in the doorway with a grin on his face.

"Apparently she tuckered her babysitters out," he informed her. "Come see this."

She and Louie followed him to the living room, where Donald, Della, and Dewey were asleep on the couch. Aurelia was fast asleep on Donald's lap, breathing lightly and snuggled into her cousin's flannel jacket. June covered her mouth, wanting to squeal at how cute it was.

"Do we leave them?" Louie questioned.

"No, we need to get Lia up to bed," June giggled. "I'll take her. Let them freak out in the morning when they wake up."

"Ah, so we're both the evil triplet."

"I just think it'll be funny."

She picked up the baby and carried her upstairs. Aurelia woke up a little as she was laid in her crib and started to sniffle a bit. Louie shushed her gently.

"It's okay, Chance. We're home now."

Aurelia babbled a bit and settled back down, falling back asleep.

The next morning they were awakened by Della screaming.

"WHERE'S THE BABY?!"

June came downstairs and found Della searching the living room. She leaned against the doorway, arms crossed while Donald came in from the dining room.

"She's not in here!"

"Hi, June!" Dewey greeted her with a nervous chuckle. "So, funny story—Lia refused to go to sleep last night so we came down here to try a trick Huey used on the twins and we fell asleep and now we can't find her!"

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah. We will, though."

Louie came in as Dewey ran off.

"You wanna tell them or should I?" Louie asked.

"Let them figure it out."

"I give them five minutes." She nodded in agreement.

Donald spotted them being awfully calm, especially given what had happened when Aurelia was an egg and been taken by F.O.W.L. He had a thought of where his cousin might be. Without a word he ran upstairs and Della and Dewey followed him. They found Aurelia in her crib, staring at them as they entered her room. She started giggling and Dewey whirled around to see Louie and June behind them in the doorway.

"Are you kidding me."

"No. It was funny," Louie replied.

"It was," June agreed.

Della thought for a moment, then chuckled.

"Yeah, it kinda was."

"Good to see you had fun babysitting. We'll be sure to ask you again next time we want to go out."

"Maybe wait until she's a little older," Dewey sighed.

"Oh, definitely," Louie agreed.

"Let's all go eat breakfast," June suggested, taking Aurelia out of the crib.

And so they did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Babysitting chapter down! WHOOP
> 
> Lots of ideas for future portions of this AU. You'll see them later.
> 
> So long and thanks for all the fish!


End file.
